To Home
by BlueBlender
Summary: It's been years since liminals, or "demihumans", have made themselves known in Japan, and even longer since he's left it. Now he's back, and for better or worse, he's living with a whole family of liminals, who are only slightly less culture-blind than him. One thing's for sure: a lot's changed, and a lot more will be changing in the future.
1. A Home Far From Home

The sun shone, roasting his scalp as soon as he stepped off the bus, an icky contrast to the breezy weather. Somehow, the smell of metal and hot rubber just made the place more hospitable: a steel cubicle resting beside a road, and behind him, crop fields as far as he could see - a scene worthy of being titled "Boonies".

The scenery was pleasant, both to look at and to take in, and he hoped that he could have some time visiting the forested hillsides. But now wasn't the time to play tourist.

He immediately planted himself on the closest bench and sighed. He was supposed to meet his coordinator at the airport, but her sudden email switched things up considerably.

If there was a way to get on Soma's shit-list, it was last-minute changes.

 _So much for Japanese punctuality. Nah, don't think like that. What did Mom say? There's gonna be slip-ups, just appreciate everyone's hard work and thank 'em._

The sound of clinking glass in his bag made him smack his lips. How do you get exhausted sitting on your ass for fifteen hours?

He pulled out a half-filled bottle and swigged. Frowning at the mouthful left, he clicked his tongue and poured the remaining water on his head, groaning in satisfaction. He knew he had snacks from the last station, but his body still felt like lead. He wasn't hungry, just empty and tired.

The stop was completely barren, and he couldn't help but smirk. This was the last time he was going to be alone for a while. Might as well soak it in.

 _According to the map, Yasaka's a couple miles away. I could just walk there, but maybe Smith just wanted to introduce me personally. What an honor._

He got up and stretched. Despite its first impression, the place was more familiar than he thought. Houses lined up in blocks, a strip mall here and there, and the occasional car driving up and down. If he ignored the signs and the mountains in the distance, he could have sworn he was in some suburb back home.

Some misplaced sense of nostalgia, he constantly told himself. That, and globalization.

Fully reclining on the bench, he tapped his pockets, making sure the essentials were still on him, put on his cap and closed his eyes. His coffee-addled brain would keep him from falling asleep. He just needed to rest his eyes. It was an hour before the agreed time - the minimal traffic was a godsend - and he read all the books and documents he had on the plane.

The sun was getting warmer, and the scent of soil wafting from the fields stung his nose. He lazily kicked his suitcase and tried to keep his smile from falling.

 _Well, could be worse. It could be summer and I'd be sweating buckets right now. Hell, I'd still be back home doing god-knows-what._

It was a whole day after he left home, and he tried to keep his chin up. This was the first time he's ever traveled this far by himself, and although he was sure he followed his instructions completely, Smith's last message didn't inspire much confidence.

 _Actually, what the hell, might as well._

Bending over to his suitcase, he pulled out a brown pencil-case and a large sketchbook. He didn't have time for much, but at least he could get a couple ideas in for later.

"Oi! Satou!"

He laid down his equipment and checked his watch. Huh, time does fly when you're having fun.

" _Ms. Smith_ \- er, Ms. Smith?"

Spotting her climbing out of a dark SUV, he shoved his sketchbook back in his case as casually as he could.

"Sorry for being late, my last host family was in some trouble."

"You're, uh, twenty minutes early," he muttered, checking his watch again.

She raised her glasses. Despite her self-proclaimed faux-pas, her smile never left her. "The fact that you're here before me means I'm late."

"This was a race?" Soma's brows furrowed in confusion. "So are we headed to Yasaka Temple now?"

"Yep. Hop in when you're ready." She leaned against her ride, and pointed at the pencil-case still in his lap.

His face burned as he frantically packed it away, and slung his bag over his shoulder.

"Do you know much about the family there?" he asked, trying to keep the mood light. He only communicated with her via emails and the occasional phone call. Could anyone fault him for being nervous?

"Eh, a family of four: grandmother, mother, two daughters. There shouldn't be any problems as long as you read those booklets I sent you."

"About a dozen times."

"Great! You know what you're doing, unlike my last client."

She was good. He knew what she was doing, buttering him and getting him to open up. She's done this before.

He walked up to the car, closing the trunk after hoisting his suitcase in. "I had a month to prepare for this, but I was not told there would be so many - _monoeye?_ "

Inside the car, a slim, short woman in a similar suit was sitting in a far corner, behind Smith's seat. Her bob cut did little to cover her eye, which immediately looked away as he saw her.

"Something the matter?" Smith asked curiously. He couldn't see it, but she stopped smiling.

" _Ah, no, it's - ah, damn,_ " he hissed, looking down. "I was... not expecting other coordinator."

"She's not a coordinator. She works for M.O.N. with me. Say hello to Manako." She lowered her glasses. "There's not a problem, is there?"

"Ah, hello, Ms. Manako." He instinctively extended his hand to her. He read about Japan's liminal unit, and tried to compose himself. His parents told him about first impressions.

It took a few seconds, but the monoeye returned the gesture. She still wouldn't look at him, though.

"And no, there is nothing wrong. But-" he let go of her hand "-ahh, are you the ones that can shoot lasers out your eye?"

Smith laughed as she got in her seat. "No. She's not a backbeard. Come on."

Not sure what to do, he kept quiet and sat down opposite to her and closed the door.

"So… anything I should know about?" he asked, dropping his backpack between his legs.

The vehicle revved with life as Smith shifted gears. "Mmm, nothing that you haven't read already."

"I meant more on the matter of why a member of M.O.N. is here."

"Why not?" He looked at Smith through the rear-view mirror, and her smirk grew wider. "It's a long drive, and I wanted company. Besides, think of this as practise. You're going to be talking to a lot more ladies when we get there. Unless you're the shy type?"

 _So much for professionalism._

"That, and the fact my Japanese is just good enough for casual conversation."

"Really? I mean-"

He turned towards the monoeye, only for her to avert her eyes again. "I mean… you speak so well, I thought…"

He waited, but it seemed that's all her confidence spent. From her tone and volume, he couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not, but tried to keep the conversation going. It was either that, or risk spending the entire trip in awkward silence.

"My parents trained me well, Ms. Manako. But I don't speak it as fluently as either of you."

He waited again, but she said nothing.

Soma scratched his head, heat rising up his face. "Ms. Smith, who did you say was the shy type?"

"Hey, getting people to talk with you's an important part of conversation. Show some charisma in front of the lady," she egged on.

 _When did Smith turn into my mom?_

"How am I supposed to do that when she looks like she wants nothing to do with me?"

She rubbed her chin. Manako was always shy, even around other members of M.O.N. Sure, they treated her all the same, and did nearly everything together, but most others could never see how deep their friendship went to getting her to open up as much as she did. Strangers didn't have a chance.

What it said about how he would interact with his host family, she didn't like thinking hard on it.

She looked at the pair through the mirror, her gut twisting at the sight. Manako couldn't stop fidgeting in her seat, and Soma weakly tried to make eye contact with her. She figured someone polite and mild-mannered would get him comfortable. But that backfired, and now she was stuck with two adults that acted more like pre-teens.

"So… do you know the family well, Ms. Smith, Ms. Manako?"

Even as he said it, he knew he slipped up. He should have mentioned Manako first! He looked her way, but she kept staring at her shoes.

"Ms. Smith, I'm sure you work with a lot of people. I know I don't fit the typical body type, but am I that ugly?"

That got Manako's attention.

"No, that's not what I meant - it's just - I'm the one -"

"Don't tease her, Satou," Smith chuckled, waving a hand at him. "And relax. No one's going to care much how you look."

"It would help if she-" he jabbed his thumb at Manako "- said that. But really: stuck in a car with two women with perfect bodies, while I wear this rag? Makes a man feel inadequate."

Smith barked with laughter. Manako had her face hidden in her hands and Soma looked down at his clothes. Indeed, compared to their sharp outfits, he looked like a lazy high-schooler on a weekend.

"Heh, you'll feel more of that when we get there." A sharp left turn made her stop her commentary as she focused on driving, the momentum crushing Soma's face against the window. "On another note, before Manako melts in her seat, you think you'll be alright living with them? Living with strangers is one thing, but a family of lamias?"

"Ahh, so that's why Ms. Manako is here?" he asked, rubbing his cheek. "I think I can manage."

There's that face again. That lax, youthful face, hardened. Sour. That was what made Manako the most nervous. It was the anticipation, the look of anxiety, that made everyone in the car tense along with him.

Smith didn't bring Manako with her just for introductions. She wanted to see how the homestay would react to a liminal in the flesh. He seemed casual enough, but she could tell: he was forcing himself to talk. Putting up a face. Even when joking, he didn't smile along with her. He just stopped frowning whenever he got into conversation.

Manako noticed it as well, as much as her token glances would allow her to. As reluctant as she was, she still wanted to help anyway she could. But it was clear he was more comfortable with Smith than herself.

"I don't know. Lamias can be pretty passionate when they want to be. Honestly, we hoped that the homestay would have been a female."

"Why are you so worried? They lived here for long enough by themselves. They must be doing something right."

Smith sighed. "That's… hah."

Soma leaned against the window, not caring how ambivalent her response was. He was going to be living here for a whole year. Might as well take in the scenery and make a minute effort to memorize the roads.

"Uhm, why did you… what made you decide to be a homestay?"

He faced Manako with a raised brow. This time, she didn't look away. He gave her body a look-over before focusing on her eye.

He had to hold back a laugh. Maybe she was rubbing off on him, but look at her long enough, and it hit him how short she was. Shorter than him. Then he remembered that as a member of M.O.N., she could break him in half if she had to. This fact did nothing to diminish his humor.

"Do you really want to know?"

This time, she didn't look away. Her eye reminded him of a marble, and his finger twitched with the impulse to touch it.

She nodded. He looked out the window again. She saw his reflection in front of the mountainside.

"I just wanted to get out of the house."

* * *

Yasaka Temple was one of many erected across Japan. Not that it held much significance, it just shared the name. Unfortunately for the people in Iga, it was destroyed along with a small edge of the town when an earthquake hit. Fortunately, repairs were done within the year and the temple was now refitted with accommodations for liminal standards.

Unfortunately, it was located on top of hill above a stone staircase that stretched for as far as he could see. Normally, it wouldn't be a bother, but with a suitcase with wheels, it was a different story.

"Need some help with that?" Smith asked ahead of him.

He lifted his suitcase over to her. "Yes, please."

"You really need to work on your people skills," she muttered, tapping her head. "Giving a lady the heavier load."

"You asked to help."

" _But a man's supposed to turn her down._ "

" _I'm not most men-_ " he stopped walking and frowned when Smith smiled. "Why English?"

" _I thought you'd be more comfortable._ " Smith crossed her arms. " _What? No good?_ "

Soma looked as if he smelled rotting garbage tanning in the sun. "The accent. Your English is fine, but your accent is… ugh."

She clicked her tongue and kept walking. "Well, your Japanese isn't that good either," she chided.

"Yes, my parents said the same thing," Soma jested. The wheels kept hitting against each step, and enough was enough. He stopped trying to pull the suitcase up and changed tactics. Carrying his backpack in his right hand, he hoisted the suitcase on his back with his left.

"You sure you don't need help?" Manako asked beside him. Finally, she was looking at him without flustering.

"All I have in here is my clothes. It's lighter than it looks."

He wasn't struggling, and he hasn't slowed down his climb, but just the appearance of a man with a load hoisted on his back like that made her worry. It was from carrying loads like that that people broke their backs.

"S-still! If you don't mind!"

Manako was being awfully insistent. Smith narrowed her eyes. Was it to make up for her behavior in the car? A sense of pity?

Soma did the same and dropped his suitcase. His frown never left him as he looked at Manako, his suitcase, and back again.

"I do mind," he said, looking at the ground between them. His small smile returned. "Do not take it personally. If my father saw me handing luggage to someone else, he would kill me."

Manako looked down, her hands rubbing together behind her back. She didn't know if he was serious or not, but he was diligent about this. She could respect that.

"See this, Smith?" he grunted behind her as he swung his stuff onto his back. "What kind of person recants helping someone after offering?"

Smith had to keep her head on the path to keep from them seeing her scowl. At least he's getting along with Manako, judging by the slight giggle she heard. She had to wake up extra-early to make to time escort him, and she knew better than to let some ribbing get to her.

 _I knew I should have brought a thermos. Haaaah, where's Darling's coffee when you need it?_

"How long has the family been here, Ms. Smith?"

"A little over a year. I check on them once in while, when I get the chance. I'm like a family friend, see?"

"Hmm." He glanced up the steps and sighed. He could see the entrance, but he could swore that the steps were growing steeper. At least the trees were nice to look at. "How'd they get through the winter season? An extra-fluffy sweater? A hot water bottle the size of a sleeping bag?"

"You'd be surprised," Smith said, placing her hands akimbo. "There's been some heavy reconstructing since they moved in. And Japanese science is always making headway into improving liminal lives."

"Huh. And I thought Japan was only good for cars, video games, and crazy game shows."

Apparently, neither of them found that funny, or didn't know how to follow up on that, or didn't bother due to the sight of the temple. Regardless, Soma was glad to get the weights off his shoulders.

However, he couldn't help but bite his lips. Despite what it was called, other than the lines of stone pillars and the red gate, there was nothing remotely traditional about the site. The main building itself resembled more of a small mansion than a temple, with the main doors decorated with stained glass windows. The roofs were not nearly as curved as the pictures in the brochures made them out to be, being complete flat with not a ceramic tile in sight.

The front yard was nice though. He didn't know how extensive the damage was, but the stone path to the entrance was smooth and sparkled under the sun. A freshly-painted fence surrounded the summit, with a forest that extended further up the hill past the building. The two trees, resembling oversized bonsai, met their branches over the path, spraying yellowing leaves all over the yard.

It would have been a scene right out of a landscape painting, if it weren't for a twenty-feet tail stretched across it.

"Ms. Airi!"

The lamia turned around and smiled. "Ms. Smith! Welcome! Ah, and this _muda-_ ah, the exchange person?" she asked, her voice deep and gentle.

As much as he stared at her, the burning sensation creeping up his face signaled him to look away. Smooth, tan cheeks dimpled behind a bob of dark hair. Bright green eyes. He could barely make out the brown scales on her face as he bowed.

"Good afternoon! My name is Soma, er, Satou Soma."

"Satou? Ah, that was the name!" the lamia chirped. She glided over to the trio, a broom and dustpan in her hands. A thick brown dress covered her down to a good chunk of her snake half, casually wrapping around her curves as she returned the bow. "Please wait here. I will bring the girls."

"Nah, don't. I wanna surprise them," Smith said, dragging a blushing Manako up beside her. "I know Amaru wants to see us again."

She nodded and slithered to the doors. Smith and Manako followed close behind, while behind them, Soma's eyes fixated on the snake tail.

Smith took immediate notice and slowed down her pace to side with Soma - difficult, considering how slow the host was moving. " _How's the first impression going?_ "

He would have heaved over laughing - when did Engrish didn't? - if it weren't for the lamia in front of them. " _She seems nice, but I think I'll be tripping over a lot of tails in the future,_ " he whispered.

" _If you want to stare, stare at her chest. They like that._ "

He clutched his bags tighter and gritted his teeth. " _Yeah, great impression, me perving on the kids' mother._ "

" _Mother?_ " Smith's smirk turned diabolical in a flash. "This is Airi Naharu. She's the grandmother."

" _Gran-_ "

He didn't believe it, but his mouth went slack when he could make out the grey roots from her scalp.

"Yes, I am the grandmother," the lamia laughed, her deep voice reverberating against the trees. "Call me Naharu. Hurry in. You must be tired."

His breath stopped halfway up his throat, unable to form words. Smith and even Manako sniggered at the look of shock on his face.

"You are the… hah~"

"Something wrong, Soma?" Smith asked, her smile still present.

Naharu placed her broom beside the door. She turned to her guests and frowned. "Are you alright, Satou? I can take your bags."

" _No_ -No, I am fine. It's just-" he palmed his face in exasperation, even as he mentally kicked himself "-you are the grandmother, but you look better than _my_ mother."

The lamia raised a hand to her mouth. Smith looked ready to explode. Manako looked at the floor, covering her scorching face with both hands.

Naharu was the first to break the silence. Cackling like a clown, she held her sides with one hand while covering her mouth with the other. Her entire lower half curled and clumped together like earphones in a pocket, briskly but gently wrapping everyone within its scales.

"Uh, Naharu?" Smith asked, her sunglasses askew from the constriction.

" _Wahi tae-taqid… ji-ddaan… ha!_ "

Soma tensed at the cold sensation of scales rubbing against him, but he couldn't help smiling along with her, however weakly, even at the sight of the lamia's scaled hands. He looked at Smith and Manako, silently begging for help, but they were suffering too, in their own way.

Smith tried to laugh it off, but the tail tightened around her the most, forcing her to push the still-laughing lamia off herself. Manako was the most uncomfortable, being practically crushed due to her minimal resistance..

"Naharu, the door?" Smith asked again, frowning.

Wiping away her tears, she took a few breaths before realizing what she's done. Everyone was bent at awkward angles, stiff from being held by her.

"Oh! _Alllae_ -I mean, I'm so sorry! Ah, the door, right!"

She unravelled herself and hurried inside, nearly hitting her head with the door in haste. Smith took the moment to correct her glasses and Manako tried to straighten her hair. Soma tried to push the corners of his mouth down, but they kept rising, and Smith's befuddlement didn't help.

"Is the rest of the family this… touchy?" he asked, hoping to change subjects.

"It's just the weather. She's cold, but she's trying to hide it. Come on."

"Hm. And I thought it was my bodybuilder physique."

* * *

And that's the first chapter to a fic that I can hopefully stick to writing on. I have written fics before, but never for the MonMusu series or finished a multi-chapter story. If you've read this far and are reading this now, thanks for your attention, I hope you enjoyed what I got. I got more materials and ideas for how to continue this, but until I get around to writing them down, please enjoy what's already there. I don't know when the next chapter's going up, but I hope to start working on it soon.

Shoutout to Pokelolmc for beta-ing this.


	2. An Uneasy Hospitality

The inside was surprisingly bland. It was reminiscent more of a hotel room instead of a home: simplicity over all else. Furnishing was minimal and only a single clock decorated the walls of the entrance hall.

" _Amal, Amila!_ Smith is here!"

Everyone but Naharu took off their shoes and followed behind her on the carpet. Smith looked at the homestay and smiled. His earlier attitude was gone, replaced with tension and wariness.

Soma clutched his bags harder as he followed the lamia. His steps grew smaller the further he went in and his eyes darted towards every corner of the house, expecting something to pop out from behind a corner.

Smith and Manako were tolerable. Even Naharu's politeness was enough to assuage him from the fact she was the largest person he's ever met. Now he was in the house that hosted three more of her.

His hands grew sore, damp with sweat.

 _Don't get fucking cold feet now. You chose this._

His head whipped at the flicker of brown to his left. An auburn-haired girl, even shorter than Manako, slid around a doorway and rushed towards them.

" _Alji!_ Ms. Smith! Mona…"

Her smile dropped and her slithering slowed to a halt when she noticed the other human behind them. He had a crop of black hair, glasses, and wide eyes that met her own.

" _Oh, hey._ "

With a squeak, she turned around and sped back behind the door, hissing " _Ukti!_ " before Soma could raise a hand to wave.

Soma slumped his head and Smith elbowed him, clicking her tongue. "Great first impression."

He bit his lip, but didn't look at her. "It was the first thing that came to mind."

"Don't let it get to you. She's a kid, what'd you expect?"

Naharu giggled. "Smith is right. She and _Amila_ are young. During our time here, Smith was the only _zayr_ \- er, guest we had."

They moved further in, eventually reaching the living room. Like the rest of the house, it was almost empty aside from a blanketed table and a television mounted on a desk shelf in the corner.

But what caught him off-guard was how large the room was. He guessed that extra space was needed to host lamias, but couldn't imagine just how much until now. There was easily enough space to fit at least two Naharus lengthwise and the kotatsu filled almost half the room. The room was enough to be the first floor in his house back home.

"I know it seems a bit plain, but hey, you can't complain about space," Smith said. "And the floor's heated, so that they can live here year-round."

The door opened again. This time, the small lamia was behind a taller one. Size aside, her dark, braided hair was the biggest distinction, flowing all the way down her back.

"So he's our homestay?" she asked, glaring her grey eyes at him. She had a dress similar to Naharu's, covering her arms and waist for a modest but stylish appearance.

" _Amila!_ " Naharu hissed. "Behave. They're guests."

"It's alright," Soma said quickly. First impressions were everything. "I wouldn't like it if a stranger got in my house, either."

She crossed her arms. Her tail wrapped around her sister, intertwining with her's. "And you are?"

"Satou Soma. And you?"

She looked him over. "Amila. Got it?"

"Amila, got it."

She stared again, until sliding over next to Naharu and bowing. "Ms. Smith. Ms. Manako."

 _Hey now, can we get some equality here?_

"Ahem." Naharu bent over to look at the younger lamia. " _Amal?_ Your turn."

The lamia in question retreated even further behind her sister, hugging her tail and looking down. Her eyes hid behind her bangs and he could see them trembling.

"Maybe we should talk by the table?" Soma suggested. He would never say it, but her squirming was making him anxious in turn. It didn't help having an equally shy monoeye beside him.

"Ah, yes. Of course!" Naharu clapped her hands together. "We have a lot to talk about. Sit around the table, please. I'll be there with tea."

With that, she slithered off, leaving him with-

"Oh, wait for me!" Smith cried as she jogged behind her.

"Yes, yes. You and your coffee."

-with three liminals that couldn't carry a conversation for their lives.

For a few agonizing seconds, they remained there, looking at their respective piece of the carpet. Eventually. Soma slung his bag free from his shoulder and gestured to the kotatsu.

"Can we sit?"

Amila clicked her tongue and slid herself under the thick blanket. Her sister followed suit, constantly alternating her gaze between her older sister and the floor.

Monaka knelt down opposite to them, and Soma sat by the side between them.

"So… Amila, and Amal, right?"

The lamia with braided hair narrowed her eyes even more as she nodded slowly. "Mhm."

He glanced at the smaller girl hugging her arm. Her eyes darted around looking at him for only instants before looking at Monaka, who responded with a quivering smile.

"Ah, hang on." He opened his bag and pulled out two bottles, one blue, the other green. "I don't know if you had it- you probably did, but-"

"Ah! Ramune!" Amal shouted, pointing at them. "Ramune, Amila!"

He chuckled. "So you had them before? Pick a color."

Without a word, Amal leaned forward to take a closer look. Even Amila was swept by the momentum and leaned next to her.

" _Gree-green ap… apple_."

Manako clapped her hands. "Oh! You can read English? What's the other one- eep!" She wrapped her hands around her mouth when everyone's eyes were on her.

Soma sneered. Looks like even she can be brought out of her shell by cuteness. "And what does the other one say?"

" _Ori… ori-gi-nal._ " She put a claw to her lips and frowned. "What does "ori-gi-nal" taste like?"

"It's pronounced: "original". Lemon and lime." Soma pulled out a can of coffee and clicked his tongue. He forgot about it waiting for Smith at the station. "Want it?" he asked, shaking the can at Manako. "It's still cold."

"Oh, umm, that's fine," she said, looking back at the little lamia. "You, uh, picked one yet?"

Frowning, she wordlessly took the green bottle and inspected the blue top. She peeled off the plastic wrap and looked at the cap, then at the marble.

"Uuuuugh."

Soma had to distract himself with his coffee before the older lamia noticed his growing grin. He popped the tab and sipped, savoring the overly sweet flavor.

" _Hune._ " Amila smiled and took the bottle and cap. The sound of clinking glass rang and she placed the bottle back on the table, its marble free and bubbles rising.

"Ooooh!" Amal tugged at her sister's shirt and pointed at the other bottle. "Again, again!"

"Not now. You can have it tomorrow," she said, and took a sip. "Sorry about her. Things like that always catch her attention."

"That's why I brought it. Have you been here long?" Soma mustered a feeble smile. Her voice was rough but soft enough to be pleasant. A far cry from her scoff from before.

"About a year. It's been rough, but Ms. Smith and the program's been big help." She passed the bottle to Amal, who stared at the marble rocking inside. "We're adjusting better than we thought, really."

"How's Iga? Japan in general?"

"Folks are nice. Mostly old people, but the kids wouldn't stop playing with my tail."

He chuckled. "Kids are the same everywhere. Ah, sorry for not asking: where are you from?"

"Er, she never told you?" she asked, looking at the kitchen entrance. " _Misr-_ oh, you'd call it Egypt, yeah?"

"Egypt?" That got his attention. "Other side of the world. Damn. Must have been hard getting used to the climate."

She scoffed again, a bit weaker this time. "You'd be surprised how cold it can get. It's not all just deserts and sun. Not as cold as here, thankfully. Ms. Smith gave us some special clothes, see?"

She tugged at her sleeve, demonstrating its thickness. From its density, it was clearly no ordinary sweater.

"Some kind of super-insulator. It's durable and stretchy, and we have longer versions for our tails for when we go out."

Soma chuckled. "For a moment, I thought you spent the whole winter lounging around the kotatsu."

"Oh, I wish!"

He finished off his coffee and turned to the kitchen. Smith and Naharu were taking their sweet time. He thought he saw an electric kettle, so he should have heard it whistling by now.

Monaka and Amal were the second matter. Manako was shyer than himself, and the younger lamia distracted herself with her soda, neither meeting another's eyes. Neither of them were much in way of conversation, and Soma was running out of conversation topics.

 _Come on, keep the flow going. What did the booklets say?_

"You're- I'm sorry, but I want to make sure- you're echidnae, right?"

His hands tightened around his coffee can. It was subtle, but he could tell a change in Amila's stance. Even if he couldn't, Monaka's increased fidgeting tipped him off enough.

"Ah, yeah- I mean, yes. We are echidnae." She pulled her sleeves back, exposing her scaled arms.

"No, that's not it," he replied, scratching his cheek. "I meant: what do you call yourselves, in your language?"

She blinked. "Oh, uh…" She looked at the doorway, hoping someone would poke their head out already. "It's… hard to say. _Zaafre-'ahelie_. Though nowadays, _lmie_ is more common."

He nodded. He knew about lamias' unique physiologies, and knew they had longer-than-average tongues. "Yeah, I can see why. Zafreh… zafreh-kahly?"

Amal whipped her head up from her bottle and giggled. " _Zaafre-'ahlie!_ "

"That's what I said!" Soma said indignantly, his smile widening.

"Having fun?"

All of them turned to the kitchen entrance, where Smith and Naharu approached, the latter carrying a tray of cups.

" _Damn,_ sorry about the drinks. I forgot you went to get tea," Soma said, standing up.

" _Biduni mashakel_." Naharu smiled as she laid the tray and sat next to Amal. "Not a problem. But if you had drinks, you should have told us."

"On that note," Smith leaned in and leered at the can in Soma's hands, and he could feel sweat soaking his back. "You're lucky I only drink instant, or I would have hit you for holding out on me."

 _Thank god I forgot to give it to her at the station._

"Instant only, got it," Soma said half-heartedly, eyeing her cup of brew. He turned to Amila and Amal. Their mirth was gone and their face was tense with anticipation. "What happens now?"

Naharu set the tea before them and Smith adjusted her glasses.

"Well, hearing as you made some attempt at introductions-" she lowered her glasses, earning a grimace from both Soma and Amila "-the only steps left are to show you around the house. You can slip into a regular schedule starting tomorrow."

"Alright," Soma said, and picked up his tea.

"But first!" Smith swung her arm in the air, her coffee precariously sloshing in her mug. "Let me finish this."

She then proceeded to down the still-hot coffee. Amal clapped her hands in excitement while her older sister and Soma looked at each other worriedly.

"You know her longer than me. Is she always like this?" he mumbled.

"Drinking half the coffee in the house whenever she comes by? Yeah."

* * *

Afterwards, the house was shown and explained from one corner to the next. Other than some super-sized furnitures, there was nothing special about the place.

Naharu and Smith were good guides, although they had a habit of cutting each other off when describing each room's peculiarities. Whether it was an old story about how a tanuki broke into the bathroom, or how one of the rooms was repurposed into a storage shed, they were a formidable pair that added some more levity to the younger audience.

 _This place is bigger than I thought it'd be. Even for lamias, this place will be a hassle to clean up regularly._

"Any questions before we finish off?" Smith asked. There was one room left: his own.

"Just one," Soma said. "You said there was a family of four. Where's the mother?"

She looked at the clock: 3:30. "Rasa's at work. Her shift's about over, so she should be back in an hour."

"Oh? Where does she work?"

"A golf course south of here. Plenty of space to work with, and good hours."

"Golf? Huh."

Smith smirked. "You a golfing man?"

" _Hell no._ My dad plays, but not anymore. I'm just thinking."

"About?"

He frowned. "What about during winter? Tending a golf course sounds like a seasonal job. What about off-season, and even then, is it…"

He bit his tongue. Amal and Amila were following behind them. Amal in particular looked worried, instantly looking down when she met his eyes. He realized how frantic he must have sounded.

 _Don't talk like that, calm it down. You're scaring them._

Smith stopped walking and pushed her glasses up. "Don't worry too much about funds. She's not the only breadwinner here." Soma noticed her volume drop. "A source of income is necessary, but the government helps pay most of the expenses."

 _As long as she keeps working, you mean?_

Her smile disappeared. He stopped breathing, in case he said it out loud. "You'll also receive a monthly pittance, but you'll largely be under the care of the family. Try to behave, and not cause too much trouble for them."

His ears reddened, but he kept stoic. "Yes, Ms. Smith."

After an intense second of staring, she sighed and clasped his shoulder. Caught off-guard, his whole face burned when she pushed him eye-level with her.

"One more thing: living with a family of lamias' difficult, but don't get any funny ideas, you know?"

Her eyes peeked over her glasses, and he felt the urge to break away from her gaze. He would have laughed it off, if he wasn't close enough to see his perspiring face in her eyes.

Before he could mumble an answer, her smile returned. "Ah, relax," she laughed, slapping his back. "You're in good hands, and they're a good family. You couldn't have asked for a better host."

"But seriously, touch them-"

" _-I get my balls busted,_ " Soma sighed, letting out air he held for how long. "I know the rules. I know what I signed up for."

"Great. So what'd you think of Amila?"

He whipped his head at her, trying to keep his face straight. Out the corner of his eye, he saw the lamia in question crossing her arms. She pouted, and her brows were raised expectantly.

"Oh no, don't let me stop you. She asked you something, it's only polite to answer back," she said, a smile creeping up. "Pretend I'm not here."

 _Is this is what they mean by a "damned if you do, damned if you don't," situation?!_

"Don't know," he muttered, staring away from her and Smith. "We only talked for a while."

"Boo, you're no fun."

Naharu smiled. "Do not scare the boy, Smith. That is for Rasa when she comes back."

She opened the door and gestured him to come in. It was as generic as the rest of the house: a plastic fold-up table in one corner, a closet containing a futon blanket at the other.

It didn't evade him that it was also the smallest room in the house, rivalling the second, more human-proportioned bathroom stationed beside it.

"It's perfect."

"We let the blankets _habv-_ breathe everyday," Naharu said slowly, looking for any sign of disappointment. "Please bring it to the front door when you can."

He stepped inside and sweeped the room. It was as if the contractors forgot about this cubicle of a space and tried to make it fit with the rest of the supersized house.

"Just my size," Soma chuckled. The wall-wide window was a small mercy, showing a chunk of the forest through the mesh screen. "What were you saying, Smith? A guy living with a family of lamias? Can you imagine a woman living in this hole?"

Naharu and Smith looked away, trying to hide a blush, the latter coughing and raising her glasses again.

Amal and Amila, on the other hand, giggled, albeit nervously. "We can move some stuff around later, in another room," Amila said.

"No, really, this is fine," Soma repeated. He lifted his suitcase and laid it next to the entrance. "Worst comes to worst, I can sleep in the closet."

"What, like Doraemon?" Smith asked amidst the giggling sisters.

"Exactly."

When all was said and done, they made their way to the main entrance. Amal clutched onto Manako, but she and Smith promised her they would visit again soon.

"I'll come by again at Sunday, see how you're faring." Smith patted the little lamia's head, who cooed at the touch. "Take care of him, Amaru. Keep Amila and your mom from staying in the same room as him."

She craned her head. "Why's that?"

"Smith!" chirped Naharu, lightly whipping her hip with her tail.

"Kidding, kidding!" she groaned, rubbing her side. "Take care, Naharu, Satou."

They bowed and waved them goodbye until they disappeared under the steps. None of them missed Smith's wink at him.

"So, Mr. Satou…"

"Please, my dad's Mr. Satou. Just Soma's fine," he said, shrugging.

"Soma then." Naharu pulled out an envelope from her dress pocket. "Smith told me to give you this when you arrive. Take the day to rest. We will eat with Rasa later."

He stared at the envelope. "Thank you. And er… sorry in advance for any mistakes I make."

Her eyes narrowed again. He dug his nails in his palm. He almost forgot he wasn't talking to a human being. Despite being eye-level, he couldn't ignore the wriggling tail and its shimmering scales.

After a few seconds, she curtly bowed. " _Uld ja'id._ You will want to settle in your room."

It wasn't a question. He returned the bow, and looked at Amila and Amal. Without Smith and Monaka, the family mustered their previous composure and were back to calm stoicism.

 _Guess they're still wary of me. Well, I'm the same way._

"Yes."

With nothing else to say and his hoodie growing hotter he went to his room.

Amila and Naharu stared at each other, sighing in unison.

" _He's… polite._ " Naharu said as she coiled around Amal.

" _He's nice. A bit quiet, but that's nothing to complain about._ " Amila twirled her hair with a nail.

" _Don't do that, you'll ruin your hair. What do you think, Amal?_ "

She looked down and rubbed her scaled hands together. Amila took the hint.

" _She wouldn't know. We only talked for a while._ "

Naharu smiled. Already he was rubbing off on her. " _But really. You think you and Amal are alright with him?_ "

She frowned. " _What's it matter? We're stuck with him still, yeah_?"

" _Amila!_ " Naharu tightened her grip on Amal, making her tighten up in retrun. " _I told you to stop thinking like that._ "

Amila glared, but quickly turned back and headed to her own room. " _Not like we wanted him anyways._ "

After she disappeared from the hall, Amal uncoiled from Naharu. " _Grandma,_ " she whispered. " _Is Sis angry at him?_ "

Naharu mustered her smile back and gripped her hand. " _No. She's just nervous about him, is all. I know he's a good outsider, but she's just worried about you. I am, too._ "

" _So… what do we do?_ "

" _We'll see after mother comes home. Think you can get along with him?_ "

She looked down again, but slowly nodded. " _He's nice, and he brought fizzy drinks! He smiled and laughed with Sis, too._ "

Naharu sighed. At the moment, that was all she could ask of him and Amal.

* * *

" _I'm back! And I got some goodies!_ "

Amal rushed to the front door and pounced on her like a hyperactive dog. Tired as she was, Rasa returned the hug with all her strength.

" _Mom! Ms. Smith and Monaka came over. They brought the man._ "

" _The man?_ " As soon as she said it, she was reminded of the email she received in the morning. " _Ah, he's the homestay?_ "

" _His name's Soma, and he's really nice. He doesn't talk much, but Grandma likes him._ "

Rasa passed her shopping bags to her and saw the mentioned lamia enter the hall.

" _How's our guest?_ " she asked and Amal hurried to lay the heavy bags to the kitchen.

" _He's in his room. I told him to rest for the day, but he'll be eating with us. And don't complain,_ " Naharu said quickly before Rasa could comment. " _I've had enough of it from Amila._ "

She groaned as she pulled her sweater off her head. " _I'm not that cruel. I'm not going to let someone starve in my house while the rest of us-_ Oh!"

In her haste to get to the couch, she didn't see the lone human turning around the hall and bumped into him chest-first.

"Gak! Sorry!" He recoiled from the force, and his glasses clattered on the floor.

" _Y'alui!_ Are you alright?" Rasa asked. She retracted back, making sure not to break his glasses by accident.

" _Rasa, your clothes,_ " Naharu groaned, covering her with her arms.

As Soma reached about for his glasses, another lamia entered the hallway.

"Oh, and WHAT is going on here?" Amila asked, sneering at the sight of the human fumbling on the ground. "And why are you stripping?"

Soma finally found his glasses and cursed himself for doing so as quickly as he did. As soon as he put them on, the first thing he saw was an exposed naval. He looked further up and saw its owner pushing her shoulder-length ponytail in place while her green eyes blinked at him in surprise.

"I- I- I'm sorry- I just wanted to greet-" he stammered, realizing what this looked like. Even as he apologized, his cheeks grew hotter. "I didn't-"

A sharp pain ran through his ear as he was pulled away, forcing him to his feet. He wrenched his eyes open and saw the perpetrator wearing a look of what could be described as disappointed apathy.

"No excuses." Before he could say anything else, Amila dragged him away from the older lamias. "Come on, we don't have the patience for some rom-com escapade."

"No- really, I swear- I didn't see- Cack!"

His pleas for help quickly died down when a thick tail wrapped around his throat, dragging him out of sight.

Naharu and Rasa remained in the entrance hall, stunned. After a moment to process what happened, Naharu sighed.

" _That… could have gone worse, I guess."_ She crossed her arms. _"That's Soma, our exchange-boy."_

" _Hm. He's… nice. At least he's getting along with Amila,"_ Rasa mumbled, rubbing the amber scales on her cheek.

" _That's what Smith said,"_ Naharu chuckled. She looked at her again, her gaze dropping to her chest. _"Now get to the bath. I'll stop Amila from killing him."_


	3. Foreign Relations

Soma immediately opened the window and leaned outside, basking in the cool air against him. He just realized how tense he was and kicked the door behind him closed.

Without Smith and Monaka to intermediate for him, the reality of the situation hit him. He was staying in a house of four echidnae. A subspecies of lamia that possess tails that can crush steel and venom that could kill someone with a bite.

He slumped under the window and felt his pocket. The introductory manual he received after his acceptance summarized most of the known liminal species, including his host family's. He must have read the thing a dozen times on his way here.

His hands started sweating. He put it back in his pocket and snarled at the lack of a trash bin in the room.

Ever since the reveal of liminals, he's been skeptical of anything related to them. He had his own life to live anyways, and his own country didn't have a hosting program to accommodate liminals. They would occasionally pop up on television and social media, but he only gave them cursory glances.

Yet here he was, in the thick of it, as the homestay, in the land he should be calling his home country. There was something desperately laughable about it to him.

He looked at the manual again and his body prickled in shame. Whoever wrote the section regarding lamias either had a very bad experience or filled in the blanks with their own imagination. Either way, he felt he would get sick if he had to read it again.

Taking off his hoodie, he went to properly settling in his room. He didn't have much: some extra clothes, a winter coat, his laptop, toiletries, and - _oh thank god_ \- his wallet and passport. Oh, and some maps for the districts.

 _You mean "prefectures". God, I should have brushed up on my Japanese culture better before thinking of integrating another._

After setting up his room with the fold-out table, he felt the claustrophobia kick in along with the coffee he drank. As quietly as he could, he picked up his bag of toiletries and headed to the bathroom.

He was happily surprised when he saw, despite how remote it was from the rest of the house, how well-kept the bathroom was. A pristine sink, glistening toilet, a shower set with a plastic stool and slippers, and to wrap it off, a tub big enough for him to sit in with his legs bent.

 _Figures. The lamias would need the bigger bathroom to accommodate their size. Don't get too jealous. You're the one invading their home, after all._

After relieving himself, he left his toiletries by the sink and heard the sound of doors opening, followed by a voice he never heard before.

" _Lakad iadat!"_

His skin bristled. That must be the mother. She's back faster than Smith said she'd be.

 _Better go greet her. First impressions, and all that._

* * *

"I'm sorry, alright?" he apologized for the fourth time. He rubbed his neck and cheeks, sore from Amila's tail.

"Please forgive her," Naharu said, pressing her daughter's head down with her's. "She's not used to people yet."

Soma waved his hand. "No, no, it's okay. It's an accident."

"Oh sure, it's okay for you," Amila grunted as she tried to straighten herself. "You got an eyeful of-"

"Amila!" Naharu hissed.

"I said I'm sorry!" he said exasperatedly. "What do you want me to do, rip my eyes out?"

Amila's breath stopped midway when she saw Amal peeking over the kitchen table. Her nails scraped against the wood and her hands trembled.

"Haah. _Le yuimu,_ " she muttered. She brushed off her grandmother's arm off her and exited the room.

"Amila!" Naharu repeated, but she wouldn't come back. "I'm sorry, Soma. She's not, er, always like this. She's… she just doesn't know how-"

"Again, it's fine," he said, looking down with a smile. "Let's… just forget about it."

He looked at Amal, who stared at the corner her sister disappeared behind. She made a move to Naharu, but instantly looked down and fidgeted at her sweater when she saw him staring.

Soma sighed through his teeth. A fight was the last thing he and Naharu wanted her to see.

"Amal." He tried to keep his voice still, but her head snapping up at him in alarm wasn't a good sign.. "No one's in trouble. Well, maybe except me, I mean, she has a good reason to be angry."

He scratched his head. Why did he have to suck so much with handling children?

But Amal slowly nodded. She went up to Naharu and whispered something to her.

" _Soryup? … jaiduh_." Naharu muttered. Smiling, she opened the refrigerator and handed her the second bottle of ramune.

Amal slithered past him with the drink, but her brisk tail rubbing against his leg stopped her. She turned around. This time, she faced him properly.

" _Maadrea_ ," she said, bowing. "You're… you don't hate us?"

"Heh." Whether it was because of the tension, the sudden apology, or her cute display, he couldn't help but chuckle. "No. And no one's ripping anyone's eyes out. Now get that to her before it gets warm."

He raised his hand, but she immediately slithered away when he finished talking.

"Well," he said after he heard a distinct slamming of a door. "I can see that living here's paid off. She's apologizing better than I did as a kid. Ma-de-ra. I'm guessing that's "sorry" in your language?"

Naharu's smile returned, albeit strained this time. " _Maadrea_. And yes, it means that."

"She's nice, giving that drink to her. Polite, too."

"I'm sorry about her. Amila, I mean."

"Ms. Airi, don't apologize for her." It took all he had to keep his annoyance out of his face and tone. This circle-jerk of apologies was getting old. "I get that she might be protective. To all of you."

"It is…" Naharu rubbed her scaled hands together. Her eyes darted to the halls. "Not just her. We all are… nervous."

Soma frowned. "Nervous? I'm the one that should be nervous, living with four women that could snap me like a stick."

"Our… people. They-we are still _tekif-_ adjusting. Getting used to living here."

" _There's no getting used to bumping into someone's… like that._ " He rubbed his forehead, as if it would help dissipate the memory from his brain. "But I guess I know what that feels like. Living in a new country."

Naharu narrowed her eyes, making him blink. "What do you mean? You live here, in Japan, no?"

He licked his lips. Suddenly, he felt very parched, but her glare froze him in place. Why did the cups have to be placed next to the sink and not the table?

"No. Not anymore," he said, rubbing his own hands together. "My family moved out of Japan when I was a kid. Didn't Smith tell you?"

"All she told us was that our _mudberlra_ \- exchange person- was Japanese. Do these things… not work that way here?"

Her downcast face only made him more panicked. He knew how problematic semantics could get.

"I guess," he muttered. "I would say that I am Japanese by blood. My heritage is Japanese."

Naharu opened the refrigerator and pulled out a two-litre bottle of tea. "And… you still are?"

He sighed and rubbed his head. "My parents… how do I say this, they revoked - erased - our status as Japanese when we moved to Canada. By law, we are Canadian. By history, we are Japanese."

It was her turn to scratch her head. If it was Amal or Amila, he would have laughed, but she looked serious about this.

 _When did this become a lesson in international relations? Is it such a complicated concept?_

"So… what are you?"

He bit his tongue again. "Like I said, I'm Japanese by blood. Canadian by law. Amila said she was from Egypt… Oh." He rubbed his forehead and poured himself a glass of tea.

 _Of course they wouldn't know. They were kept hush by the govs all over the world. Giving them citizenships would be pointless. Someone old like her… it's like teaching my mom how to use a touchpad cellphone for the first time._

Naharu scratched the scales on the back of her hands. " _Maadrea_. I… it is confusing still. Moving here was… not a bad thing."

"But you're still transitioning." He looked at her eyes. As much as they talked, he could tell she was tired. Not only from conversation, but the topic. "That's okay. People don't get used to a new country in just a couple months. New language, new customs, new environment, it's not that easy."

She looked back at him, eyes locked. " _Na'm_. It is what you say." She let go of the glass and held his hand resting on the table. "So I ask: please be patient with Amila and Amal. You know how they feel. Please help them."

She bowed again, this time, going as low as her upper body could go. Whether that was to show her honesty, desperation, or hide her increasingly damp eyes, he couldn't tell.

"I understand." He bowed back. He had to bury his nails in his palms to keep his voice steady. Now wasn't the time to show weakness. "I will try."

They straightened up and Soma looked at the hallway again. He said all that, but…

"How? Do you have any advice? Amila sounded like she wants nothing to do with me."

"Like you said, she is protective. But she… does not hate you. A good start." Naharu sniffed. " _Zaafre-'ahelie_ are very close. Even our _esira-_ our group is small, and we were very… unsure to join with Smith in the beginning. Just having her talk to you is enough"

He nodded. Being a host family sounded tough enough, but while in a completely new country? He couldn't imagine anyone being happy to do it. No wonder Amila was so rough on him.

"Oh! _Innasit!_ "

She rushed to the refrigerator and mumbled to herself, pulling shelves and moving around groceries until she sighed in relief. " _Huna_. Keep this with you."

In her hand was a small plastic cylinder. It was decorated with colorful stickers with names and letters written all over it.

 _Epipen? No, the labels are all over the place. Is this…_

"Medicine? For me?"

She nodded. " _Huna_. We sell our venom to scientists and researchers. In turn, we receive antivenom and payment. We all carry one when we leave the house. For emergency."

He held it up to his face. At first glance, it looked just like an epipen. If it wasn't for the label "Echidnae", he would have thought one of the family had a peanut allergy.

"All of you carry one? I thought snakes, er, lamias were immune to their own venom."

"Yes, that is true." She looked at the hallway, her eyes shimmering. "For emergency."

"Whose emergency…" He followed her gaze and his insides felt like they turned to stone.

"Please, trust us." She bowed again, moving so fast that he nearly dropped the antivenom in alarm. "We have never hurt anyone. Back home or here. The antivenom is for everyone's protection."

His hands sweat as he gripped the antivenom tighter. To them, "protection" meant more than just physical harm.

 _They can't have harmed anybody, or they'd be deported by now. Is the antivenom just insurance? To make people feel safer?_

"Ms. Airi. I swear," he muttered as he laid it down on the table. "I would never-"

"Ah, so you're our homestay boy?"

Both of them jumped at the voice. By the main hallway was an echidna, the biggest one in the family. Her damp hair clung below her shoulders while a towel was wrapped around her head. Unlike the rest of the family, she was wearing a thin, yellow t-shirt.

His body snapped into a bow. He hoped he was quick enough to keep her from seeing his face redden. Was that shirt long enough to cover enough of her?

"Yes, you met," Naharu quipped, rubbing her temples. Soma looked just as unnerved as she was, and she needed to smooth things out. "Don't you have anything more… _moakadilo?_ Everyone else has worn their dresses."

"You know my clothes get dirty from work. And clothes that let air through is perfect after a bath," Rasa said, eyeing the still-bowing human.

Naharu didn't like it. She knew her daughter wouldn't get angry over an accident. But she did value her daughters' well-being over anyone else's.

When Smith came to her with the idea of letting a human live with them, she knew how vehement she and Amila was against the idea. The family had enough to worry about, and Smith tells them to take care of some stranger? What was wrong with what they were doing so far?

Naharu knew, and Rasa knew she knew. Rasa wasn't angry. She was inspecting him. Any falsity, any insincerity hidden under that guise called humility, she would snifff out. Even if her own mother thought he was trustworthy, she could never believe it on word alone.

 _Like mother, like daughter. Haaa, if only he was a girl, then this could have gone more smoothly._

" _Let the boy go, Rasa. It's not like he meant to see you like that. Besides, you don't look like you minded._ "

Rasa and Soma stared at her, one frowning and the other confused.

" _That's not what this is about, mother. I just want to see how… he is._ "

Naharu snorted. " _You're not going to find out by looking like you're going to throttle him to the ground. Get some rest. You're still tense after work._ "

Rasa ignored her and got herself a cup. "So, how our little home?" she asked casually. But Soma and Naharu could tell there was a firm tone under it. "Amila and Amal hasn't been too much a bother, I hope?"

He bit down a sarcastic remark regarding the house. Her voice was lighter than he thought would come from a woman her size.

"Excellent, I think." He smiled nervously. What did he have to be nervous for? It's not like he was lying about it. But that shirt was rather tight on her. "Rooms are neat, furniture and decorations are… well-placed, and most importantly, the toilets are sparkling."

"Ah-ha!" Naharu hooted. "He knows his priorities!"

He eyed both of them for their reactions and noticed their slithering lower bodies. He thought that the mother - _Rasa,_ he reminded himself - was the biggest of the family, but now he noticed that Naharu had her tail coiled up like yarn, while Rasa used her full tail to stretch herself taller, and by extension, bigger.

"And the children? You think you'll be fine living here?"

"Well, it'll be weird, living with four women, but as long as… that… doesn't happen again, yeah." He wished he could slap himself. Stop thinking about that!

"Can't make any promises about that."

Soma flinched at the coarse voice. It sounded like Amila was back to her regular, smart-mouthy self. She even had her arms crossed again, and replaced her black sweater-dress for a lighter and brighter brown shirt.

"You'll have to stay on guard," she said, her fangs exposed. "Like you said, living with four girls… It gives people something to think about, you know?"

He sighed. Japan changed dramatically, far more than he thought possible - not just the country's well-being, but the people's attitudes.

It was no surprise that the abundance of liminal homestays in Japan were female, but everyone also knew how difficult it was to register as a host or a homestay. So when it came to introducing new homestays to Japan, the impressions ranged from welcoming to wary. The rumors surrounding the more enigmatic or dangerous species didn't help, if his homestay manuals gave any indication.

As such, members of a species known for their killer grip and venom as well as their hostile yet emotional nature was a mixed bag for Japan.

While a part of him was what one could call "wistful" being back in the country, another knew he had to, as Amila put it, "stay on guard."

"I know. I"ll try not to disappoint anyone." He gave a small smile. He face Rasa and Naharu, both looking as unsure as him. "But now… what usually happens now?"

* * *

As it turned out, what usually happened next was setting up dinner. It was earlier than he usually ate, but he couldn't complain. In his experience, people were happier with full bellies, so this was another chance to get to know Rasa and her children.

Despite the grown-ups' insistence against it, he helped set up the table along with Amila and Amal. The last thing he wanted to do was nothing while everyone picked up after him. He could clean and prep for himself, at least.

 _No chairs, huh? Guess they would be more of an obstacle for their weight-class._

The meal was surprisingly simple: miso soup, rice, grilled mackerels, tsukemono pickles and a mixed salad. He almost choked at the proportions that were served, though, and he mentally thanked Naharu for plating his servings on smaller bowls.

But there was something else that bothered him. He almost hesitated taking a spot around the table, his hands grasping at air, at the lack of… something. What was it?

His exasperation wasn't missed by the matriarch. Rasa had to wrench her hand back when she noticed her hand reaching his shoulder to comfort him.

" Ah! Ms. Airi, anything else need doing?"

She hoped he didn't see her hand pull back. Her nails seemed dangerously long, now that she looked at them again.

"No, no, that's fine. We're almost done, so you can sit next to Amal," she said, pointing at the youngest lamia rubbing her teacup. "Is something wrong?"

He scratched his brows. "It's just… I never thought that echidnae… ate miso soup and salad."

"What did you think we eat, then?" Amila sneered beside her sister. "Raw meat and more raw meat?"

He held back a snicker. Her mood improved more than he thought. Whether it was because of her echidna nature or Amal's intervention, he was glad they were back to speaking terms again.

"Actually, yeah. What did you eat back home though?" he asked sitting opposite to her. "I don't think they sell prepackaged miso in Egypt."

Amila looked at her chopsticks. "Well, I won't even try to pronounce most of our food to you-"

" _Zaafre-'ahlie!_ "

"-yes, exactly," she laughed as her tail twined with her sister's. "But it's nothing like this. Mostly we trade food and other things from other tribes of _lmie_. Grains, spices, dried meats, recipes, things like that. Some tribes move from place to place, while others like ours stay in a single place, growing their own foods."

"Ooh!" Amal perked up, her eyes gleaming. "But there was that! That thing!"

"Thing?"

"That thing! Those, ahm, those weird bags, in the boxes those _guhurabn_ -"

"Ah! The _bashr_!" Naharu chirped up. She coiled down next to Amal with the pot of remaining soup. "We started trading with them recently. Now that _zaafre-'ahlie_ do not hide anymore, we trade more with them."

Rasa was the last to join the table. When she saw the look on Soma's face, she rolled her eyes. "What Amal and my mother mean is the human traders. We trade our goods with them. Thanks to them, we've been living far better."

Soma tried to organize each of their words, replaying them in his head. Things? Boxes? Human traders?

"They've been really helpful," Amila said. "The sweaters are made from their fabrics, see? They're perfect for cold nights." She pulled her sleeve and smiled, exposing her fangs teasingly.

" _Bashr"? They mean humans? Slow down a little, would ya?!_

He scratched his head. "That's good to hear, I guess. But by "humans", you… no, nevermind."

He looked around. Everyone was around the table now, utensils were laid out, and while they talked and smiled with him, he noticed their eyes darting back and forth between him and their respective bowls. They were hungry, some more than others, and the talk of food only whetted their appetites.

" _Itadakimasu!_ "

He blinked at the outburst and saw Amila smiling with her hands clasped together. She picked up her chopsticks but froze when she saw him staring.

"Uh… no?"

"Heh." Soma copied her gesture and smiled. The time for talk was over, and he shouldn't hold everyone back from their food. "Yes, _itadakimasu!_ "

The rest of the family joined in the chant and for the next minute, only the sounds of clinking metal and glass was made.

It was a weird event, eating with a family of lamias. In his experience, meals with guests were bland but amiable moments, where his parents would chat up with their friends and relatives while he would vaguely follow along their conversation, laughing and fitting in a comment or two.

Here, it was different, Expected, given the role reversal, but it a disturbingly pleasant way. Dinner was mostly hushed, aside from the utensils and some occasional sighs of content escaping the occupants. Everyone ate with a sort of controlled fervor, letting time smooth out the awkwardness from their conversation, concentrating on their food.

As nervous as he was, even Soma asked for seconds after everyone else did, causing Rasa to mumble at Naharu. Probably something about getting him the same bowls as them.

But gradually, the atmosphere changed as bellies filled. Smiles were more frequent, hands slowed down, and Naharu noticed Soma's eyes catching every detail of his hosts' actions.

"More rice?" she asked, moving her hand towards his bowl.

"No thank you," he snapped. His face heated. Everyone looked up from their bowls and at him. "I mean, I had lunch before I came, and I guess I didn't think I would be eating dinner so soon."

Naharu only nodded. " _Zaafre-'ahlie_ live in the day. We wake when sun rises, and sleep when it sets."

"So your meal schedule is based around the seasons. Good to know." Soma said. He hoped he didn't sound too fascinated by this new information. He picked up his bowls and walked to the sink.

"You should know that we eat twice a day, too," Amila muttered, picking up her own bowls. "Once in morning, once at evening."

"Not that that's how we always eat," Naharu interrupted. "If you get hungry, just ask one of us-"

"It's alright, Naha- er, Ms. Airi." He loaded his bowls in the sink and felt his stomach tighten. This was one of the parts of the exchange program he was most worried about. "Ah… should I wash my dishes?"

"Oh, just leave them there. I'll wash them when everyone's done eating," Rasa said, waving her hand.

He felt himself flush. "Do you mind if I wash my own dishes?"

Rasa and Amila blinked in unison, the former recovering faster. "Feel free," she said, smiling.

"Thanks," Soma replied with a short bow, and he quickly spotted the sponge and dish soap. "But… what are YOU waiting for?"

Amila blinked again. The sudden snappy yet innocuous tone made her tail curl up. "I… just…"

Soma got to work on his dishes. He remembered what Naharu said. About how he should try to get along with her and Amal. He cracked a smile. "If you want, I'll wash yours."

She immediately snarled. "That's not what I'm mean, I'm just…" She looked behind her, catching each of her family's expressions.

" _Watch your tone, young lady,"_ Rasa's said.

" _Play nice, would you?"_ Naharu's said.

" _..."_ and Amal's was pure curiosity, wondering what would happen next.

"I'm waiting for you, so I can clean mine, alright?"

Soma turned around. Rasa and Naharu had their eyes wide while Amal looked at her own bowls.

" _Well, this is a welcome change, don't you think?_ " Rasa muttered.

" _We should have him eat with us more often,_ " Naharu chuckled. " _Haven't seen this in a while._ "

Soma flinched when he saw Amila's lips purse and his hands slowed to a halt. "Did they say something?"

"Just hurry up."

* * *

It was past six, and the sun was well past the horizon. The sky turned a sickly shade of blue and Rasa and Amal were the first to turn in for the night.

"Please don't stay up too late. Both of you," she said to Soma and her children. Her shirt was replaced with one similar to the insulated dresses, except this one had buttons running down and had looser sleeves. " _Tualla ila selie, Amal._ "

" _Lukn ahmi…_ " Amal complained. She tried to stifle her yawn, but she struggled to keep her eyes open.

Soma shook his head. The sun rose and set early in Japan, especially in autumn. Amal's sleep cycle wasn't the only one affected. "Do you usually sleep this early?"

"Yes. My job needs me to wake up before the sun. For that, I need to sleep when it sets."

"Doesn't sound like a good job for a cold-blooded people, no?"

"Oh no, it's actually perfect for me!" she laughed. "It's a lot of moving around and hard work, but lamias are built for such things. And it is still quite warm, too."

"It is true," Naharu said, nodding. She poured water into a large kettle. "Do not look down on our _nisaum_ , Satou."

"I wasn't!" he stammered.

Rasa giggled and tugged a sleepy Amal beside her, slithering into a bedroom.

"Do they usually sleep together?" Soma asked.

Amila glared. "Yeah. Problem with that?"

"No. My mom did the same when I was Amal's age."

She looked up and shook her head. She just couldn't imagine him as-

"You just thought you couldn't imagine me as a kid, didn't you? Hard to believe, I know."

She flinched. "Just keep your hands to yourself."

"Hm."

Amila's eyes narrowed, Naharu's following shortly after. Amal did a good job cheering her up in her room, but her suspicion persisted.

The only human she and the rest of the family knew personally was Smith. She was the one that they met and talked with the most ever since they came to Iga. She was the one they met from the beginning and introduced them to Japan and the MON team.

And now after a year of relatively successful integrating, she says that an exchange student has to be dumped on them.

 _What did we do to deserve this? Did she think we need more surveillance? Why make our lives harder?_

"I think I will sleep, too." Naharu said, picking up a fresh mug of tea. " _Play nice, alright?_ "

Amila groaned. The sun was set by now, only an orange glow visible through the window, but her family was going to bed earlier than usual. What did her mother and Naharu think they were going to do?

Soma stared at Naharu disappearing past the hallway and got out of his seat. "Well, if everyone's going to sleep, I'll- ah."

Something fell out of his pocket as he got up, and on reflex, Amila swooped down and picked it up.

"Ah, don't- I got it-"

 _A booklet? About liminals?_

"Hang on, what's this?" A smile crept on her as she flattened it out. "A pamphlet? Wait, let me see that."

Soma tried to swipe it back, but she was too quick.

 _Play nice, huh? Fine, I can do that._

In a second, her tail was wrapped around Soma, entrapping him in thick muscle. He immediately froze on spot, but Amila quietly huffed. She made sure not be too tight and gave him plenty of room to move. It's as if he was trying to avoid touching her, keeping his arms glued to his side.

"Whatever, let's see here." She flipped past the introduction and hummed. "Arachne… centaur… dragonewts... "

 _Damn… the world's a big place. I haven't even heard of these races, and they're just the ones inducted into the exchange program? But most importantly…_

"...and the topic of the day: lamia." She smirked when she felt him flinch. "Oooh, something the human doesn't want me to see? The book's spine's all bent here too."

She traced her nail along the printed words, the pitch of her hums swinging. Some of the descriptions were worth laughing at, like the lamias' passionate disposition and their love of eggs. Some of the more invasive details were even worth looking over due to how right they were. She had relatives swap embarrassing stories about being caught during shedding. Amila still remembered the times an infantile Amal played with her tail, to mortifying results that she hoped Amal didn't remember.

"What the… "Lamias would lure men into their villages and hold them as communal husbands."? Is this what's being…"

Soma didn't need her comments to see her temper growing. Her tail had suddenly tightened, and he was having trouble breathing. "Uh- Amila, can you-"

" _Ya'illhi_ … "force themselves on them."? I heard about this, but…"

She tore her eyes from the text and looked at Soma. His eyes were shut and he was gasping for air through his teeth.

"Is that why you signed up as our homestay?" she spat. As much as she hated leaving her home, leaving Japan when they finally adjusted to life would be just as frustrating. Rasa and Naharu ultimately did agree to the suggestion, after all. "A chance to get some with a whole family of lamias? Huh?"

She remembered to keep her voice down. Naharu and Rasa's rooms were in the other end of the house, but there was also Amila to consider. She already had to come to her to calm her once. She didn't need to be told off another time.

"N… no," Soma sputtered. His whole head was red, but Amila wasn't done.

"You think the law's going to protect you? Not from me." She pulled herself closer to him until she could see her teeth reflected in his wide eyes. "I haven't forgotten your little "accident" with my mother, you know?"

"That was-that was an accident. Honest!" he croaked.

She pulled away and lessened her grip on him. Still trapped in tail muscle, he heaved over, trying to get as much air back in his lungs before she changed her mind.

"Then tell me: why are you our homestay? Why did Smith think we need one now?"

She let go of him completely now but kept her glare on him. He took a few more breaths and coughed into his hand. His face gleamed with sweat and she could see the corner of his eyes growing wet.

 _Oh shit, was that too much? Damn, if he uses this against us and tells-_

"I don't - gah - I don't know," he hissed, making her flinch. His eyes were bulging and a strand of spittle escaped his mouth. "I don't know why my application got through. _Shit_ , I didn't even think I'd get accepted."

"Why'd your family volunteer to be a host family, then, in the first place?" He got to his feet but had to lean on the table to keep himself straight. If he wasn't so winded or sore, he'd be screaming.

She hesitated. During their stay in Japan, they took every precaution and followed every rule to avoid being deported. It worked, and while it took the entire duration of their stay and Smith's help to earn Iga's trust, they pulled together a relatively pleasant life.

At least no one stared them down like he did now: eyes bulging, heaving, snarling.

"I didn't have much of a choice." She tried to sound firm, but only managed to sound just as angry. It didn't help with her reflexively crossing her arms. "Smith practically begged us to apply for a homestay. She said it's be a big help for the program, or something like that. My mother and grandmother made the decision in the end, alright?"

"The program? So it's Smith's idea? _Fuckin' govs_." He coughed a few more times and rested his head down on the table. He looked up, matching her gaze. "Look. I don't know why I was picked. For all I know, I'm probably the only one that applied at all. Heh, pretty obvious why now, huh?"

She flinched again. Her crossed arms hugged her chest and her tail was knotting itself behind her.

"Look, let's just… let's just forget about this, alright? I won't speak a word of this if you won't," he groaned, waving his hand. "I'm turning in, sleep this off."

"Hey-wait-"

She grabbed his shoulder as he passed her and he jumped out of her grip. That frantic look in his eyes reappeared and he was snarling. "What is it now?"

She shivered. This was the first time she's ever saw him, or any human so angry. She needed to choose her words carefully. If this devolved into a shouting match, she would be the one getting the blame.

 _Rightly, too._

"You still… you didn't answer my question." She laid her arms to her side and tried to keep her voice down. "Why did you apply in the first place?"

"Tch." He looked away and walked out of the kitchen and down the opposite hallway. His own hands clenched beside him. "It was an excuse."

She felt something crumple in her hand. For the moment, she forgot she still had his introductory manual. It was completely crushed, with wrinkles spreading across the cover.

"I just wanted to see how my home country's doing," he said lamely. He turned his head around. His voice was cracking and his frown turned into a full grimace. "It's been, what, five, six years since I last came back here."

 _So that's it? He just wanted an excuse to come back home? That's what we are, some extra baggage he needs to babysit?!_

She looked down at the ruined manual. Whatever misery she felt from constricting him in her tail was replaced with the rage that made her constrict him in the first place. This was even worse than someone taking advantage of what some pamphlet said about her race. This was taking advantage of her family's situation.

All that just to come back home. That fact got her angry to the point where her head was beating.

" _You self-serving, egotistical bastard!"_

The words came out of her as a whisper, but she made sure to pack as much disdain into her words as possible. Even if he didn't know what she was saying, the vitriol should be enough to let him know what she thought of him.

If not, the crumpled manual hitting his head would.

Soma flinched on impact, but didn't move from his spot. He waited until he heard the sound of a door closing, and let out the breath he was holding.

 _Shit… well, that could have gone worse. She didn't break any bones, at least. Good thing I'm used to being screamed at. But how could I forget about that manual? Now Amila's even more suspicious._

He rubbed his arms, still sore from her tail. He heard and read what lamias were capable of with their snake half, but he didn't expect his first-hand impression was to be strangled by it.

He picked the mangled manual up and shoved in in his pocket. As much as it endangered him, Japan was the hotspot for other interspecies visits. If he saw any of them during his stay, at least he'd know how to behave around them.

 _Behave? What am I thinking, I don't even know how to behave around my hosts._

He turned off the lights to the living room and kitchen, and rubbed his eyes. With the pain lessening and the fear leaving him, the energy seeped out of him and he felt his body slacken. The family had the right idea, turning in early.

" _Know how they feel?" How does Naharu expect me to help her like this? She doesn't hate me, huh? She does now._

In his room, he didn't bother unrolling his futon and moved his bags to the side before laying down on the tatami. There was some paperwork in that envelope Naharu gave her. He'd fill it in tomorrow.

"One down, three-sixty-three days to go. Yay."


	4. Household Labor

When he woke, the first thing he noticed was his cheek rubbing on the rough straw floor.

 _When the, where… oh yeah. Exchange program. Lamias. Japan._

He pulled his face off the floor with a groan and wiped the drool trailing across his cheek. He hasn't gained complete control of his limbs yet, and had to resort pulling himself forward like a worm to move around.

Light poured from the window and he groaned at the sight of the moon hanging high. He dragged his arm in front of him and read his watch: 4:26.

 _Ho-ly shit, I'm up early. Guess the jet lag's still kicking._

He was rubbing his eyes when he felt something fall off his face. His glasses hit the ground, tumbling into some corner of the room.

" _Shit._ " He flipped himself over and got to his hands and knees, desperately fighting the urge to ignore it and fall back to sleep. The fear of accidentally crushing his glasses helped with that.

" _Anar ahiln._ I'll be home a bit late."

He felt his glasses in his palms and froze. Who would be up this early?

" _Mudira_ calling me at the last minute to cover him early, _allanaet!_ "

It was faint, but the light coming out from under the door confirmed someone else was up. He placed his glasses back on and crawled up to the door, careful not to make any noise.

" _Yaum zaidn, Razha._ "

" _Sah._ "

He heard the main door creak open and closed, and the sound of running water afterwards.

 _Right, a golf course. Still, I didn't see a golf course anywhere during my ride yesterday. Damn, how does she have to commute? Can she even ride a bus?_

He sat there for a while, trying to process what he heard. Rasa sounded pretty angry, and it didn't sound like it was just because of an extra shift. Even with the special clothing, waking up early to work when the sun's not out can't be fun, especially when season's getting colder.

And the grandmother, Naharu, said something about them not wholly agreeing with this exchange program in the first place. He thought the worst. Lamias had naturally communal mentalities, so-

 _The manual._

He patted the crushed booklet in his pocket and groaned. The thing that infuriated Amila into crushing him like toothpaste. No wonder he was so sluggish: his arms were still sore.

The first time he read through that chapter, he was more than fearful at the more adulterous lamia practises. As much as he assuaged that fear with the fact he'd be a student in his home country and the family's hospitality, that was easily replaced by a fear for his life yesterday.

He felt goosebumps rubbing against his hoodie. Whether it was her own personality or the species' nature, her dislike of him was clear now.

 _Note to self: never be in the same room with Amila alone._

But for a moment, he felt her hesitate. The way she shirked, flinched when he snarled back at her.

 _Why are THEY here? Hell, how am I even supposed to bring something like that up in conversation?_

His jet lag wearing off, his eyes focused on a brown envelope on the desk. When Amila said it was for him, the first thing that came to mind was money. But that thought was replaced with dread when he felt a thick bundle of paper in it. He was never a fan of filling in documents.

"Might as well." He pulled out a pencil case from his bag and, after stuffing the manual back in, got to his feet. Smith said she'd be back on Sunday, so at least he had the full day to finish it. Besides, he didn't want to seem lazy in front of his hosts.

His ears sharpened, he opened his door as gently as possible. Naharu was still up and about, but he couldn't see or hear her.

He made his way to the living room and laid his stuff on the wooden desk. From the larger windows, he could make out the purple sky and frowned. Did Naharu leave with Rasa? The lights were still on, so she was probably around somewhere.

He shivered again. He didn't think the fall season would be so cold. Next time he would sleep properly.

Then he saw something: a long coiled tube, covered in brown scales, behind the backyard door's window.

 _Even with that thermal sweater, that's a lot of skin- er, scales exposed. Is she alright?_

He grabbed the handle but stopped himself from pulling when he saw her full body. She was coiled up - _probably the lamia equivalent of sitting_ \- and had her head down. He couldn't see properly from his angle, but he could at least see she had her hands resting on where her lap would be.

He looked past her and saw a small shrine of sorts, if it could be called that. It was just a wooden desk, laden with picture frames, small statues, and black cauldrons holding smoking incense sticks.

 _Prayer? I never saw this when she toured me around the house._

 _Well why would she? You're a stranger, and this looks pretty personal._

He turned around, his guts knotting themselves. Despite his own stance on spirituality, a prayer was a ceremony, and it didn't stop him from feeling like a voyeur.

" _Maide tafal'm?_ "

He stopped breathing. Even when speaking a different language, Amila's voice was unmistakable to him. But when did she get behind him, or hell, how did she wake up this early, when the sun was barely up?

"Ah, _itzihalm. Yubarik,_ " she muttered, glossing through the window with half-lidded eyes.

He panicked. She was getting dangerously close to touching him when she moved, and her speaking a completely foreign language made it worse.

"Uh, Amila?"

She faced him, and the drowsiness from her eyes disappeared. " _Maide tafal'm?_ "

He raised his hands in front of himself and took a step back. He desperately hoped that the door was sound-resistant. "Sorry, what'd you say?"

" _Kesh,_ " she growled. She moved back as well, making sure her tail didn't get in his way. "I said, "What are you doing?". Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

He glared back at her, too tired for a verbal comeback. Instead, he walked to the main table and sat down where his stuff was.

" _Ma'hlan_ , isn't it polite to answer back when someone asks you something?"

He didn't know what she said, but the tone made it guessable. How did he hold a conversation like that yesterday, smiling and laughing?

 _Amal, of course. Someone like an adorable younger sister role would soften anyone up. Hell, Manako was smiling. And Smith was there too, so she couldn't be seen acting out of line._

"I just want to fill in these forms," he muttered, tearing open the envelope. He winced: if that much paper goes into every homestay registration, it would be better to compile the forms into a book. "And you? Didn't you say lamias wake and sleep with the sun?"

"Your heavy feet woke me up," said Amila, looking back at the door.

Soma remembered how angry she got last night, but looking at her now, he tried to relax. Whether she was trying to ignore what happened, or waiting for him to make the first move, he had to try to lessen the animosity if he didn't calm down. Someone had to break the silence sooner or later.

 _Don't get cold feet now._

"Does she pray… everyday?"

She crossed her arms. With the way her tail moved across the floor, he couldn't tell if she was nervous or if the cold was getting to her.

"Never missed a sunrise, even back home. It doesn't take long, about half-hour."

His head snapped back. That long? "But her tail, and the winter…"

"Even when it's snowing or raining." She shook her head. "Whenever we try to pull her back in, she'd ignore us, but when we try to pray with her, she'd tell us off." She huffed, but a small smile formed. "There's no rebutting her. But she's tough, and she'd throw us back in the house if we kept trying."

He tried to keep the mental image of Naharu throwing Amila over her head from breaking his composure. At least her mood seemed to get better.

"Who does she pray to?"

He didn't miss her nails starting to press into her scaled forearms, but kept his cool as best he could.

"Everyone. Us, family back home, _Altheabenm_ , and-" she squirmed in place, smirking "-don't tell her this but… Smith, too."

 _Altha… what? So even liminals have gods, then?_

"Hm." He nodded and sat down behind the table. Stretching his arms, he scanned the first of his forms, thankful that they were in English.

"Hey, uh, Soma?"

He felt his hands sweat. Chalk it up to nerves, but whenever someone called him by his first name like that, he always thought it was because he was in trouble or someone wanted him for something. Regardless, it was the first time she had called him that since he arrived.

 _And it's the girl that nearly crushed me last night. Can this get any worse?_

"Yeah?" he asked, pretending to read through his papers.

Her squirming got worse, and out the corner of his eyes, he saw her biting her lip. He could feel her whole tail scraping against the floor, and the tension grew bigger and bigger.

"Look, I told you, just… forget about it. What happened yesterday, don't worry about it."

She stared at him, and he sighed. "It's about the law, right? The host can't harm the exchange student, and vice-versa. I told you: I won't say anything if you won't."

Amila's whole went stiff. This wasn't the response she expected. He thought he'd be more forward, more assertive with this fact. But he looked almost annoyed by what happened. He could use what happened yesterday as leverage if he wanted to!

"Don't… don't lie like that. You just want to… I mean, you're just here because…"

Soma sighed again. He really shouldn't have said all that when he did.

" "I'm just here to see my home country." Yeah, I am. But I'm not deporting myself or you because of that. I heard what the situation is like in Egypt."

Amila's head snapped up. Her eyes narrowed, and he could feel the needles poking into him. He would have looked down if her eyes didn't paralyze him on the spot.

"What would you know about what it's like there?"

He licked his lips, but - _oh thank you, every deity in existence!_ \- the backyard door slid open.

" _Fuuuh, ailek alanaeto!_ Soma! You are awake?"

Soma sighed in relief. "Yeah, I am. You said lamias rise with the sun, right?" He glanced at Amila wearing the meanest mug he saw. "I'm still adjusting to the new time zone's all."

"Ah, yes. The plane." Naharu turned to Amila. " _Oh, and when did you wake up so early?_ "

She crossed her arms. It was far too early to be teased like this. Not in front of him. " _His footsteps woke me up._ "

Naharu smiled. " _Well, if you're up, you can help make breakfast._ "

"Gaaaah, _limadah!_ " She faced Soma, her exposed fangs making him jump. "You're helping us make breakfast. Now."

Soma blinked. He shot a glance at his documents on the table. "Wait, now?"

The pair already headed into the kitchen, but not before Amila's tail whipped his backside.

* * *

 _What's your deal, Satou?_

Amila kept looking over her shoulder to see him move about. He finished setting up the table, and he was now laying out side dishes from the refrigerator that her grandmother called out while she was chopping vegetables for soup.

She was tasked with laying down utensils and plates on the table, giving her ample chances to look at what he was doing. Unfortunately for her, it wasn't much. He kept his head down and limbs busy, constantly asking Naharu for anything else that needed doing.

"Nothing else for now, Soma," she answered, finishing off the soup. "Ah, can you get Amal? It's time she woke up too."

Amila snapped up. "Wait, _jida_ -" She felt a tail wrap around hers and stopped talking.

He hesitated along with her. "Her? Now? It's only six, isn't it?"

"The sun is bright now," Naharu muttered, cracking eggs into a bowl. "If she does not wake up now, she will sleep all day."

After another moment, he nodded and marched down the hall, hoping he remembered where her room was.

After he got out of sight, Amila felt her tail being released and faced her. " _What are you doing, grandmother?_ " she hissed. " _Letting him in her room?_ "

" _He won't do anything suspicious. I'm giving him a chance to show you that._ " She wiped her hands dry and glared. " _And Amal needs to get used to humans as well. It's not like he's going to hurt her._ "

" _No, but she's still scared of humans-_ "

" _Which isn't helped by not meeting with them. She can't hide behind us forever. This is a chance for her too._ " Her tail tensed. " _If anything, seeing him up close will scare her awake for breakfast._ "

Amila seethed. It's true that both of them felt like they have grown languorous over the years, but that explanation didn't ease her. She knew something was going to happen.

" _Sister!_ "

From the other end of the hall, she smiled as Amal dashed her way to her arms, burying her face in her tail.

" _There, there._ " Amila smiled at Naharu, who seemed to be split between a smile and a frown, leaving her with an expression that made her look like she drank old milk. " _You were saying, grandmother?_ "

"Next time, Amila," Soma mumbled. "You wake her up. She nearly jumped over my head to get away from me."

"That was my plan," Naharu laughed. "See, if Amila woke her up, both of them would go back to sleep again."

"Oh yeah, I know exactly what you mean!" he chuckled. "Cold weather, don't want to move, and you end up sleeping the whole morning."

Amila bit her lips. She agreed with him, but she would sooner bite her tongue before smiling at him.

"Amal, wait at the table," Naharu said, carrying a pot of soup over. "Both of you too."

Breakfast was over faster than she thought. Amila noticed how Soma constantly looked around, checking out everyone's hands and eyes. He was not yet used to living here, that was obvious, but she still wanted to smack him every time their eyes met. She could settle for him flinching and looking down at him bowl, in the meantime.

 _He's used to Naharu, but not me or Amal. Altheabenm, why him?_

"Ah, do you have any plans for the day?" Soma asked, rubbing his fingers, desperate to avoid her eyes.

"Today's a Saturday, so we - that is, all of us - check on the _ilmah'silo_ , the garden," Naharu answered.

"Garden? I didn't know it was still the season for it."

Amila smirked, but felt Naharu's tail tapping hers under the table. She bit her tongue to keep from frowning: that was the signal for her to fully explain stuff. "This one's going to be the last haul for the year. So, it's also the time we do the most work, preparing the fields for next year, pulling weeds, things like that."

He nodded, but still looked worried. "Where is it? I didn't seen a garden coming up here."

"It's higher up the mountain side. There's a path that leads further up. We found a shed up there with some tools, so we thought, "Why not?"."

After washing the dishes, everyone wore their warmest clothes and grouped together in the backyard. There, each of them carried two plastic gallon jugs filled with water placed besides a drainage spout, with Amila carrying a bundle of plastic garbage bags.

"Not too heavy for ya, is it?" she joked, seeing him struggle a bit with his jug. "The garden's a bit far, and it's uphill."

He grinned back, shaking the jugs around. "After coming up here with my bags yesterday, this isn't much." He looked at Amal, who due to size, could only carry a single jug. "Besides, I'm not the one that needs help."

* * *

The garden in question was not much, especially with only cabbages, onions, and spinach being the season's haul. A rectangular patch, divided into thirds, was all. She was alway happy for more food for her family, but she wished that they could grow crops in the winter. Shame not even their special clothes could keep them warm long enough for farmwork.

 _Then again, not like we can grow much in the first place._

"You can put the water there, by the shed." She held back her laugh as Soma waddled past them, hunched over in exhaustion.

"So, hah, what's first on the list?"

She scoffed. He actually sounded eager.

"First, get some gloves in the shed. We got scales, but your hands are a bit squishier. Then, starting on the edges there, pull any weeds you see and work your way row by row."

He scratched his head. "So, weeds, and then?"

She huffed. "I'll tell you more when you're done, now get to it! Amal's starting there, so you start at the opposite!"

"Got it!" He snapped up to attention and jogged to the field.

"Tch!" She slithered next to Naharu, took her share of planks and nails, and planted them into the ground. " _We're finishing the fence today, yeah?_ "

" _Did you have to have to be so harsh to Soma?_ "

Amila stared at her, more confused than angry. " _He's not a guest. And those that don't work, don't eat. Those were your words, right?_ "

" _I mean, could you try to be a bit more welcoming? He's in a new place, and living with liminals. How scared were you when we moved here?_ "

Amila clenched her teeth. " _That's different! Here, he's in his own country-_ "

" _This country is no longer his home. He is as much a stranger as we are._ "

Amila froze. Naharu didn't have to raise her voice to sound angry.

" _This is not his home, or his own country. He is a foreigner now, just like us. And I'm sure he's scared like you and Amal were. To stay here, we need to give a good impression for the homestay. It's not going to do you any good to antagonize him._ "

She shook her head and focused on her fence post. " _I know. I just… nevermind._ "

Meanwhile, Soma was on his knees, trying to look busy.

 _Gotta keep moving. Can't give her an excuse to crack down on me, not in front of Amal._

He pinched off a thistle and looked over at Naharu, who was chastising Amila. He kept his head down, but his ears perked at their conversation. Whether it was because of the topic at hand or just the dialect, they were speaking with surprising speed. If he focused, he thought he could make out some words he heard them say before, but that could easily have been his imagination.

 _Cultural exchange, huh? Then the first thing in order: learn the lingo._

As he neared the center of the field, he got closer to Amal. Even so, he could tell she was still wary of him. Her hands and tail slowing down was proof enough, but her constantly looking his way only to snap her head back down was more than a bit discouraging.

 _Still sore over what happened in the morning, huh? Why'd Naharu tell me to wake her up? It's clear she doesn't know what to do with me… and I her._

Still, if he was going to live with them, he should at least be on speaking terms, language barrier or not.

"You, uh, almost done there?"

Amal jumped, but she only nodded in response.

He looked back at Naharu and Amila. They stopped talking, but he saw Amila frowning at something. He looked back at Amal, who had stopped moving entirely, with a similar frown.

Soma went down on both knees, making sure he didn't touch the crops, until he was eye-level with her. "Does Amila talk like that? A lot?"

Amal looked at him, only to look down again.

"...yes."

He sighed. Figures.

"Does she talk like that to you?"

"...no. Only to _uomi_ and _j'hida_."

"And they… talk like that too?"

"They talk like that to _ukti_. Not much now."

" _Ukti" must be Amila. For someone with only a year of exposure, her Japanese is better than I thought._

"She's only angry because I'm here. She's afraid I'm going to ruin the vegetables, so she made me work with you."

She didn't answer back, turning back to weeding. Her pace was focused, which was enough to say she was done talking.

 _Damn, touched a nerve. I was never good with kids._

After the weeds were picked, Soma and Amal stuffed them into a paper bag in the shed. Amila and Naharu looked like they were almost done replacing the damaged fence-posts, so Amila told them to wait for them for further instructions.

Soma sat on one of the jugs by the shed while Amal coiled her tail around herself. They could only distract themselves by looking at Amila and Naharu tearing off and replacing posts.

"You want to go help them?"

She blinked. Slowly, she nodded and clenched her hands.

"I know that feeling: you want to help, but you'd just get in the way."

She nodded again. Soma sighed and looked at the field.

"But hey, we finished weeding before them. Imagine how embarrassing it would be if it was the other way around, them finishing before us."

To his surprise, she laughed. "Because of you, Mr. Satou."

"Me? This is your garden. You know how everything works, I just followed your lead."

His smile grew with hers and she was even covering her mouth to keep from laughing too hard.

"Hey!"

He jumped at the call. Amila was done with the fence, and Naharu came over with a bottle of water.

" _Huna_. You did good. Not a single leaf in sight."

Soma smirked. "If I did a bad job, Amila would yell at me. By the way-" he handed his bottle to Amal "-need to tell her something."

Amila looked up from her own bottle. "Wha?"

"Just a minute. Come on."

He walked past her, even gesturing his hand to her to come follow him. Amila looked at Amal and Naharu, silently wondering what happened.

" _Go to him. He said he wants to talk. It must be important for him to single you out._ " Naharu breathed into her clasped hands, trying to warm herself. " _We'll wait for you._ "

She frowned, but obeyed. She crossed her arms as she came behind him.

"So what's this about? I want to get back to work."

He put his hands in his pockets. "It's a bit about what happened this morning. You know, before Naharu."

She looked back at the lamia in question, and ah'd in understanding. "Yeah, what about that?"

He took a moment to look back at them as well before facing away. "I won't talk much about it. I know what I said, but really… I don't know much about Egypt, what happened there."

"Damn right," she snarled. Her crossed arms flexed in response. "And you should shut up about it if you know what's good for you."

"Yeah. I will. I just want to say: watch what you do and say in front of Amal."

"What do you think-!" She stopped moving, remembering she was right behind them. She opted to grab his arm and pull him further away, past the treeline. "What the hell are you talking about?!"

Soma hesitated. He knew what to say, but with her so close and looking like she did yesterday, he couldn't help but sweat. Only after biting his lips he remembered why he wanted to talk.

"You're her sister. And at her age, you're the closest family member she has, so be careful of what you say."

She bared her teeth. "I don't know what the hell you're saying, but I- none of us would ever hurt her!"

"No, you wouldn't, I know that. But that's not what she's seeing." He looked back again, thankful that Naharu was busy cuddling up to Amal. "Amal told me. When you came here, you had some fights with Naharu and Rasa."

She flinched. What did Amal tell him? How much did she tell him?

"What does… that's none of your business! You're just an exchange student, coming home!"

"Yeah, it's none of my business. But I'm still going to worry about her." It got harder and harder to keep his voice still, but he kept firm.

"Why? Because she's a kid? Because you want to protect her?!" she sneered. "That's not your business! That's MY job!"

"She's in a new country, and right now, she's too young to understand why and how she's here. She's scared. I know all of you are, and all of you hate it here." He bared his own teeth, more out of frustration than rage. "If you really want to help her, the last thing she needs is to grow up scared of her own sister. You should know that, as an older sibling."

Amila was seething at this point. Her swing tail threatening to knock down the trees around her. Did he think of her that poorly? "Don't you… _pverra_ … patronize me! What the hell do you think you can do to help?"

His nails dug into his palms. "Not much. But while I'm here, I want to try."

Her tail didn't stop thrashing, but she turned away. The temper she showed yesterday was an afterthought. Right now, she looked ready to explode. Amila ran her hands through her hair, wiping away the sweat she didn't notice form on her face. She looked at Amila and Naharu. They don't look like they heard them yet.

"Do what you want. But if you hurt her or you fuck up, it's on your head."

Before he could say anything else, she slid past him, making sure to give one last glare.

 _What the hell does he thinks he knows?! He's been here less than a day, and he thinks he knows what's best for her?! That… that vre'don!_

The rest of the work flew by without a thought. Watering was always the easiest part of gardening. It also should have been the most enjoyable, if it wasn't for a certain human _._

Lacking a faucet or a pipeline, they rigged a long plastic tube as a hose and attached it to one of the jugs. One would raise it up, while the other would point the tube at the soil. At the bottom of each jug, a piece of duct tape covered a hole, which would be peeled off when watering to help it drain faster.

"Good thing's we make two pairs, huh?" Naharu asked Amal, who was hopelessly trying to balance her jug over her head. "Amal, you want to work with _ukti_ or _j'hida_?"

Amal looked down, eventually picking Amila. She and Soma held a jug each, while Amal and Naharu watered. For Soma, it was a repeat of the weeding, going from one end of the field to the other. But for Amila, it was torture.

She spent the majority of the time looking down, trying to avoid looking at him as much as possible. She would have been ripping her hair out if both of her hands weren't occupied. Better yet, she should have been tearing that human to bits.

 _Crushing him yesterday was too lenient! That bastard, saying all that when he doesn't even know!_

" _Uh, sister?_ "

She looked at Amal. She had reached the end of her row, but due to the short length of the tube, she had to move along with her, and was waiting for Amila to move with her.

" _Ah, sorry!_ "

 _Watch what you say and do in front of Amal._

 _Shit, did he have to remind me even in my mind?!_

" _Sister, did you fight?_ "

Amila nearly broke her jug in her hands. " _Er, what? No, no! We just talked, really!_ " She could already feel Naharu and Soma's stares on her. " _So- he just said some things._ "

" _About what?_ "

She suppressed a groan. The stares were getting heavier, but if she flaked out now, that would make her more suspicious to Amal.

" _Well… first, about what a wonderful girl you were for helping out in the garden._ " When that didn't get a laugh out, she panicked. " _I mean, that, and about how I should wake you up next time, since you… you're so scared of him._ "

Amal opened her mouth to retort, but nothing came out.

 _Ha! That's it! Switch the focus onto her and she's dead in her tracks._

 _But… what does that make me?_

" _I'm not scared. I think. I just… I don't mind him living with us, but…_ "

" _You don't know what to think of him?_ "

Amal nodded. " _He's not mean. He's trying. Like us._ "

Thankfully for everyone, the job went faster than expected and they used up all the water. Checking her watch, only a couple hours' past since they arrived, and it was a little before noon.

"So, watering's done?" Soma asked. He rubbed his sore hands together before flapping his hoodie. "What's next?"

Naharu laughed. " _Faalau!_ We are done!" She wiped her forehead. "Take the jugs. We're going back."

"Wait, that's it?"

Even Amila had to laugh at that. She and Naharu fetched a large plastic sheet from the shed. With some rocks and spare wood, they placed and anchored it over the field.

"Yes!" Naharu answered. "We finished quickly, because of you. _Taht, Amal._ " With a last stretch, they took their share of the now empty jugs and slid past Soma. "I will have lunch ready soon."

He stood there, looked around the garden. The fenceline was enormous, but he could see where they replaced the wood. He saw the echidnae follow one another, side by side, and frowned when he saw Amila going past them.

" _Fuck_ ," he sighed. " _I said too much._ "

* * *

Thanks for FinoalCielo for beta-ing.


	5. Afea Franca

Lunch was a subdued, if weird, moment. So far in his stay, he had only basic Japanese food. Now, there was a meat stew, a potato salad, and bread, all of them prepared with ingredients and techniques he didn't recognize.

It would have been an interesting and very convenient icebreaker, asking about what they were eating and how Naharu made it, if it wasn't for his talk with Amila before.

He hoped Naharu didn't notice his drop in appetite, and busied himself with finishing his documents after Amila and Amal went back to their room.

"Did you talk with her?"

He looked up from his - thankfully finished - papers and saw Naharu with a plate of apple slices.

"With Amila, yeah." He checked his watch: 2:21. Rasa should be back soon. "Did… did she say anything?"

"No, but she does not have to. She hates you enough, easy to see."

"Sorry." He did not know what else to say. "That's why I just want to drop the whole thing."

"But I think it good you talked with her still." Naharu laid down the plate down on the table. "She was the most _aneed_ \- against coming here."

 _Of course she was. She probably had to leave all her friends and the rest of her relatives behind when she came here. Add that to the fact she's at the age of puberty… hell of an emotional baggage._

"Even if I'm getting her to talk, it's not going to solve anything." He eyed the apples, but didn't take one. "She probably wants to go back home."

Naharu's eyes shifted. Her wrinkles became more pronounced even when her smile remained. "Yes. We all do. But right now, our _kobillah_ is… trying to get by with the _bashr_."

 _Bashr… that's the word she used yesterday. Rasa said they trade with humans now, right._

"But there's still problems."

" _Na'm._ "

"Dangerous ones?"

Her smile finally faltered, and she got up.

"What do know about _zaafre 'ahelie_ in Egypt, Satou?"

"Not as much as I would like."

"Oh? What do you mean?" Her eyes narrowed but she kept her tone steady.

He stared at the form before folding it up back into its envelope. "When Amila and I talked yesterday, I told her that coming here for the exchange program was just an excuse for me to come home. That was just half-right. I really do want to know more about liminals. But news reports don't cover much, other than from the human side of things. But now I'm here, I don't feel like… like I've learned anything."

He sighed. "Maybe I just had the wrong expectation, the wrong mindset on things." He scratched his head. "Sorry, I'm rambling. None of it's your fault, no," he quickly added, noticing her eyes.

However, Naharu relax as she crossed her arms. " _Ya lilahuleh. Nahn kunna…_ "

Sweat ran down Soma's back. Whatever she was saying, she looked serious, and after last night and this morning, he didn't think he could take another talking to.

" _Laa_. We have had wrong thoughts of our own. _Shkraan_ , for telling me this." She bowed again, and he couldn't resist returning the gesture. "But one more thing." Her smile reappeared. This time, it was ready to stay. "Why do you want to know us, _musbashr_?"

He scratched his head again. "A lot of reasons. Well, no, just a few. I mean…" His skin prickled in embarrassment, but he forced himself to match her gaze. "Now that liminals are a public thing, we're going to be meeting more of them than ever, right? Might as well get used to it."

They matched eyes until Naharu looked down and nodded. " _Arra_. I wish Amila thought the same way. About _bashr._ "

"It's not like everyone's open to the idea of cultural exchange. I'm sure there's plenty of liminals against it, and they probably have good reasons to be." He grinned as he took an apple slice. "I'll keep trying to get along with Amila, but I don't know where I can go with her."

"Go with her? You think of _ttawatte_ … dating-"

"No! Nonono!" He crushed the apple between his fingers as he looked around, hoping Amila wasn't anywhere near enough to hear her. "I mean like, we got off bad at the garden, and no matter what I do, I just make her more mad. I don't know what to do."

Naharu's smile turned into a knowing smirk. "Oh? I thought you and Amila got along well yesterday."

He licked the pulp from his fingers. It was more to distract himself from her teasing, but it worked. "Yes, but that was just an introduction. Being nice by default."

She nodded, but her shifting eyes told him she wasn't listening. " _Yukinu_. I have an idea."

"You do?"

But she slithered down the hall without another word, leaving him alone.

 _Dammit. And I thought Smith was pushy._

Down the hall, he could hear Naharu talking, and Amila sounded like she's calmed down. Still, he couldn't help grimacing when she came with Amal.

"Can you move?"

"Sure, for what?"

She held up a pile of booklets: Japanese and English drill books.

"Aaauugh."

"What was that? Sounded like a cow dying," Amila chuckled.

 _That WAS a cow dying. I never thought I'd had to see those things again._

He looked at Naharu, silently begging her otherwise. She only responded with that smirk again before leaving them to themselves.

Sighing, Soma got to his feet. "Fine. I'm done with my stuff anyways."

To be fair, the sisters kept to themselves, and to his surprise, far more focused on the drills laid out than he ever was with his own homework. Meanwhile, he would get back to his artbook, finishing any unfinished sketches.

After a while, things came to a lull. He sat down away from the table, preferring to lean against the window for sunlight, but he could see what they were writing and how far they had gotten.

He turned to a new page and smiled, an outline for a new piece freshly formed.

" _...ui… wuis-tul?_ "

He held back a snicker. He was sure that Amila was glancing at him just was often as him her.

" _Whistle._ " He didn't have to look up to feel her glare, now in full force.

"She wasn't asking you." She clenched her pencil. If he looked closely, he could see her nails digging into the wood.

He shrugged, hoping his growing smile was covered by his book.

Amal, meanwhile, nodded and got to the next word. " _Co… co-ooh?_ "

This time, he knew the question was directed at him. She looked at him expectantly, even pointing at the word in the book with the finger as she did.

He scrunched his face. " _Cough?_ "

" _Maah?!_ " Amila whined. He did not need to know their language to know what frustration looked like. "But-but-but! This… _through!_ "

He looked up from his book and saw where she was pointing. "Cough" was indeed the word, but above it, she was pointing at "through".

"Ah, the o-u-g-h." He shook his head in exasperation. "Yeah, those are pretty hard to read. But yeah, that's pronounced " _through_ ". And c-o-u-g-h is " _cough_ "."

"Like an "f"? Seriously?"

He winced. Amila was snarling again, but it was not what unnerve him this time. Maybe it was they way her hair looked like she touched one of those electricity-charged balls at the science museum, or her eyes coming dangerously close to shutting.

"Uh, yeah. Like an "f"." He leaned over to look at the drill book and groaned. The list of words, while it had definitions, had no clear explanation to how to pronounce them. " _Order, air, little-_ "

"Wait, that has "t"s in it!" Amila sputtered. "That sounded like " _li-ddle_ "!"

Soma scratched his head. "You can pronounce it both ways. Whichever way you say it, that comes down to practice."

"Ah!" Amal pointed at him, her eyes wide and shining. " _Ori-original!_ "

"Original?" he repeated. "Oh, the ramune. Good memory." He returned the smile, partly due to how Amal's tail was shaking like a dog's.

She looked at Amila, who was slowly turning red in the face. " _Ukti, dahu yusaidu._ "

With a huff, she relented, forcing down an oncoming smile. Maybe having him around had some merit after all.

"Alright. But you better not goof off because he's helping you."

" _Na'm!_ "

"What? What'd she say?" Soma asked, scuttling back to the window.

Amila slid her hair back. "She wants you to help her study." A grin was growing. "Think of it as your payment while you're living here."

"Heh, food and board for tutoring." He looked at his book and shrugged. "Sure, why not. But I hope you can translate between the two of us when we have to."

To his relief, there was little he could actually help her with English. Amila and Amal followed the drill books, constantly writing them in rows, even going back to words they had difficulty with to write another set. He would mostly be there to read out the words they had doubts on, while occasionally giving examples to how they were used in sentences. This left him with pockets of time for him to focus on his own work.

Soma was glad that Amila relaxed the further they went into their study, and that Amal, while no expert, was constantly translating the words back into her own language for him to remember.

Amila could tell he was getting more comfortable, but now, she did not think on it. She could tell he was keeping his distance, not out of fear but respect, yet his apparent enthusiasm was spreading to them both, especially Amal.

 _When was the last time she smiled was studying? Hell, laughed?_

 _The last thing she needs is to grow up scared of her own sister._

The more she repeated it, the more she hated it and the more right it was. She did not want to leave home, none of them did. But before she realized it, Rasa and some of the other adults signed their group off for "relocation".

She was nearly an adult, and they didn't think to tell her about it?

"You're pretty good at this," Soma said, stretching his back after they finished the drill books for the day. "I never thought of it, but your Japanese is, too. You only lived here for a year?"

Amila and Amal copied him, the former smirking when she saw his eyes dart away. "It was just the basic words and sentences at first, from books and recordings Ms. Smith gave us. When we did, the first thing in order was learning the rest. Living in a completely differently place where your language doesn't work is a good motivator, you know?"

"But still, in just a year, that's amazing. Took me a year to just get the hang of English, but you're speaking it like that."

That got a laugh out of her. "We probably know more Japanese and English that _uomi_ and _j'hida_. Uh, that means-"

" "Mom" and "grandmother"? Yeah, I kinda got that."

"Working hard, I see?"

The trio looked up at Rasa, carrying an armful of groceries with a large smile. "Hope you have not bothered him?"

"Oh no, not at all." Soma got up, trying to smile back. "It's not like I had anything to do, so… yeah."

She looked at Amila, who was furiously shaking her head in denial behind him. "Anyways, when did you get back?"

"Just now. Oh, Mr. Satou. Ms. Smith called me to warn you about your papers. She said she would be coming over to pick them up tomorrow."

"Really? Perfect, I just finished them." He walked past her with a curt bow. "Thanks for telling me."

Rasa watched him go into his room and turned to her daughters, who followed suit. " _So, anything happen while I was gone?_ "

Amila shrugged, her tail coiling around Amal's. " _Eh, we just watered the plants in the morning and studied until now._ "

" _And what do you think of him?_ "

 _The last thing she needs is to grow up scared of her own sister_.

" _Annoying, pretentious,_ " she said through clenched teeth.

Rasa chuckled. " _All men start off like that. But we get used to them. You've talked with men before._ "

" _That's not… yeah, I did, but not like this._ " Amila groaned into her hands. " _I just… don't click with him, alright? I'm not saying I don't like him, but… I can't NOT get anxious._ "

" _Why?_ " Amal asked, biting her lips.

" _He… he and I talked some,_ " she said. " _When we did, I thought he was some jerk, just jumping on the exchange program like it's a vacation. Mom, you get a lot of crap from the co-workers, right? I thought it was going to be like that._ _But it wasn't. He's… he said he wants to help us._ "

That got the message across.

" _But, that's a good thing, right?_ " Amal asked. " _He helped with the garden, and helped with English._ "

Amila fought back the urge to laugh. She compromised by hugging her from behind. She's been doing that a lot ever since they came here. " _That too._ "

" _Is this about... back home?_ "

Her arms tightened. " _Yeah. I guess… it's not that I'm angry at him, he's just making me think of home._ "

Naharu and Rasa sighed. While they had acclimated to their environment, Amila and Amal were still in that phase.

" _Mom, grandma, we… we are going back, right?_ " Amal mumbled.

" _Of course, Amaleyilah._ " Rasa wrapped her tail around her and rubbed her head. " _But home is… home is not safe right now._ "

" _But everyone else stayed. And you always said "We have to stick together."._ "

" _Because they're strong,_ " Amila interjected. " _And we can't-_ "

" _Amirashienna!_ " Naharu glared. She made sure to keep her voice down, but couldn't stop Amal from wincing. " _I keep telling you: there are other ways of being strong. Learning is one of them. That is why we came here._ "

Amila wanted to yell "And the others? They don't have to play by anyone's rules!", but then they had heard that one too many times.

 _Now I get what he was saying. I really am getting too high-strung about this._

" _Sorry,_ " she said, letting go of Amal. " _What I mean is that our tribe can take care of itself. It's not like it's going to disappear with just the four of us moving out. And that's why we're here, to learn about humans more than we could by staying home._ "

Rasa looked at the table, covered in eraser shavings and scrap papers. At least there was no carpet for it to dirty. She smiled. " _Here. Since you and Amirashienna's working so hard with our guest, how about a trip tomorrow?_ "

Everyone looked at her. By "trip", she meant somewhere far. Ever since they moved to Iga, they never went anywhere far outside of Kyoto. They never had to, and they had a silent agreement that they would never wander. Smith was a good tour guide when she helped them adjust, but she never told about what to do besides behaving while they were here.

Not that they ever questioned that. They had more on their minds than falling into tourist traps when they arrived.

" _A trip? Where?_ " Naharu asked. " _With all of us? With Satou?_ "

" _Of course!_ " she laughed. " _We can't leave him in the house alone. And I got tomorrow and the Monday off. So what do you think?_ "

Amal clapped her hands in cheer, but Amila fidgeted. " _What brought this on? I'm not complaining, just…_ "

" _What? I can't spend some time with my daughters?_ " She pulled out a paper slip from her pocket. " _Got this from work. A coupon for a restaurant in Osaka. But we can do some shopping too. You and Amaleyilah could do with some new clothes before it gets too cold._ "

Amila shivered. The first winter was bearable with their special clothes and the house's internal heating, but Rasa and Naharu made sure to buy extra heaters and hot water bottles when the season passed.

It has been 5 months since then, and while the prefecture was a fascinating sight, it was daunting, and they never stayed longer than they had to.

 _Then again, we learned more from that trip than we did cooped in here_.

" _You're right,_ " Amila said. " _I saw in the news that some new stores opened up in the big prefectures and Osaka. We might be able to find some things better for us to wear._ "

She turned around and looked at the hallway.

...

Soma rubbed his head. He finally finished smoothing out his draft and coloring it in. Thankfully, the door was closed tight and the family was too far away for him to instinctively perk up to pay too much attention too.

Now he needed to work fast. The image can only stay in his mind for so long.

 _Start with the table, then the tail. Don't think too much of the torso or the head, those come later. Get a good grasp on the spacing first, and then the posture._

After a few dozen broad pencil strokes, he scanned the paper. Like always, he overdid it with the sketching and pulled out a narrow eraser. He shaved away the edges with the same motion, nodding when the outline-

"Hey Satou."

His head snapped up and his palm felt twice as sweatier than before. Amila flinched. Didn't he hear her slide open the door?

"Yeah?" The lights were on, so his only hope was that she could not make out what he was sketching. That, and the hope his voice was steady enough. "Sorry, I didn't hear you."

"I didn't say anything yet," she laughed. It looked like he's drawing something. "Dinner's ready."

 _Dinner? It's just past four. But then again, they rise and sleep with the sun._

But the sun was still clearly visible. There must be something else.

The table was just about ready. Dinner was similar to lunch, but with a side of bean-salad. It was not particularly delicious, but it went well with everything else. More surprising was the lamias: every one of them was smiling, even Amila.

"Is… is this a special occasion?" he asked eventually. "You won the lottery or something?"

They did not stop smiling, but he could tell there were anxious to talk. He followed Naharu's gaze to Amila, who's smile faltered when everyone else followed suit.

"Tomorrow," she growled. "We're going to Osaka."

He blinked. "Osaka? That's at least an hour from Kyoto."

She shrugged. "It's a special occasion: mom's got the Sunday off and we want to check out the place, do some shopping, before it gets too cold."

"And you want me to be the tour guide?"

Despite her embarrassment, her lips perked up. "...yeah?"

He laid his spoon down. A night on the town with a group of lamias? Wasn't he the homestay?

"Sure, but what about Smith?" he asked. His palms were getting sweaty again. "My documents. She's going to be coming over to pick them up."

"Smith is very punctual when it comes to those things," Naharu said, moving her plate to the sink. "When we had papers, she arrived right after we wake up. You can give them to her before we leave."

"Yeah, we got all day." Amila shrugged. "So it's settled."

Soma scraped at the stew at the bottom of his bowl. "It's just… I've only been to Osaka once. I know some of the hot spots from online, but… do you have a plan for what to do?"

"Isn't that why you're our tour guide?"

He did not have to look at her to see the smirk growing. She saw his computer and phone in his room. With those, he could search up stores and their locations without needing a map or pamphlet.

Along with a roof over their heads and means to live, the house also came with wifi and cable, all covered by the government, according to Smith. Unfortunately, they lacked a television set, and they only one cellphone to browse the web, which was usually carried by Rasa when she left for work.

Simply put, he was their best bet in planning their trip. Sure, they could go regardless, but they would likely end up going around in circles. They were also his host family. Anything happens to him would lead to disasters for them.

"Alright, I'll find where to go. But I'll be following you, just as much as you're following me." He sighed, but a laugh escaped. Even out of school, he has homework.

Rasa and Amila told them about what they were looking for, and he got the gist of it. A department store would have everything, but there was that restaurant coupon Rasa had. To his amusement, it was one that catered to liminals. However, looking at restaurant online showed it was relatively far from both the train stop and a department store.

 _They'll probably have no problem walking-slithering so far. Hope my feet last._

"How's it?"

"How's what?"

Amila frowned. "What you're doing."

"Oh. Oh!" He looked at her, to the screen, and back to her. "You mean… oh yeah, it's… fine."

"You sure?" she huffed. "You look like you got a couple things on mind."

He looked around. Naharu was washing dishes, Amal was reading picture books with Rasa in their room, so once again, they were alone.

"Just keeping track of the paths, the stops, things like that."

She crossed her arms, her tail swinging wildly behind her. "Is it hard? We got a map and you have a phone, so we're not going to get lost."

He looked at her tail and nodded. She wasn't the only one nervous. "The planning's easy. Actually going there is the hard part, I think. I've only been to Osaka once too, but that was over five years ago. You guys might know more about the area than me."

"So we're going in this blind? This is going to be great," she snarled.

"As long as we don't get lost. How was your first time there?"

"Gah, terrible," she spat. "People kept staring at us, we didn't know where anything was or where to go. If it wasn't for Smith, we would have died out there."

He nodded again. He was no urbanite, but being liminals surrounded by humans must have been especially frustrating.

"Any… physical difficulties?" He scanned her from top to bottom. "Walkways, trains, how were they?"

He could tell by now that the questions were getting to her. Her arms stiffened and her tail would not stop wagging.

"Small. We managed to squeeze into a train car, but the roads…" She ran her hands through her crackling hair. "They were wide enough, but… how does anyone get by in cities like that?"

Soma smiled. "That's what happens in an island country with over a hundred million people." When Amila looked up and fidgeted with her fingers, he clenched his teeth to keep from laughing. "That's eight zeroes."

She glared, but her anger quickly passed. "Eight zeroes?"

"What, never had to count that high before?"

She fell on her tail, counting off her fingers. "No no, never." A hollow chuckled escaped her. " _Uomi_ and _j'hida_ said there were more humans than liminals, but…"

He frowned. "How many _zaafre 'ahelie_ are in Egypt?"

"You actually pronounced it right that time," she scoffed. "There are different tribes of _zaafre 'ahelie_ , and nomads, meeting each other for trade and things. _J'hida_ said there was a time when _zaafre 'ahelie_ numbered over _einshwert-_ er, ten thousand. Now, she thinks that's dropped to six thousand."

Soma's skin pricked again. Her aggression gone and she's started talking more about herself, but he knew he brought up a sore spot with her. He read about their decrease in population in the booklet.

"Sorry," he mumbled. "Got sidetracked. Anyways, I got a route in mind. Trains from here to Osaka come every hour, and there's the trip back. We don't know when we leave, but I assume this trip's probably going to take all day, with all the shopping. Here-" he turned his laptop towards her "-that's the route. It's going over some of the wider streets, so time's shouldn't be too much a problem. Anything else I should keep in mind? Any allergies, sicknesses, medication?"

He tried to smile back, but she did not reciprocate. She stared at the screen blankly while he looked at her eyes, wondering what she's going to say next.

" _Astamtaa?_ "

Both of them looked up to see Naharu rubbing her eyes. She slid next to Amila, who cracked a small grin.

"Oh, er, we're just wondering how this is going to happen. In a cityscape like Osaka, there's a bunch of people, and the roads…" He winced. "Wait, don't tell me you and Rasa waited for something like this." Even as he said it, his scowl bent upwards.

"Of course!" Amila laughed. "What better cause to go out than having someone that can explain everything for you?"

" _Kunna muhedabn,_ " Naharu muttered, tapping Amila's hip in admonishment. "Do not worry. We know the road. If it is too much, you do not have to come."

"No, I already said I'd go," he said, waving his hand. "It's not like I don't want to see the city, either. But really, should I bring anything? Wallet, phone… oh, and the antivenom, I guess?"

Naharu nodded. "Do not worry about money. Just bring what you think you need for yourself."

"That's not much, then." His mother made sure he had some money before he left home. He could at least pay for his own transportation.

She nodded again. She gestured for Amila to follow, but she kept still.

" _Amalhani'hn dakiktun, ulidu utahadus maauh,_ " Amila whispered.

Naharu's eyes told her enough. She nodded one last time before returning to her room.

Soma stared at her tail until it disappeared behind the wall. "Sorry if I'm sounding creepy, but why do you always go to your rooms? Is it a lamia thing?"

"There are some things that lamias have to do behind closed doors," she answered drolly.

He frowned, but shrugged it off and closed his laptop. He saved everything he could into his phone, from intersections to store guides. He could not think of anything left to prepare.

So why was she still here?

"I just want to-"

"I'm sorry." He bowed, both in respect and to hide his cheeks. "I said things I shouldn't have. Things I don't know about. Things I… I have no business with."

Amila froze, her breath caught in her throat. She had to cough several times before realizing what he said.

"That's… that's alright- well, hang on!"

He did not raise his head, but she could see the sweat rolling down his neck. This was just as embarrassing for him as it was for her!

"I mean, no, you were right," she stammered. "About me, about Amal, I mean… gah!"

She clutched her hair, a combination of embarrassment and bewilderment causing her whole body to squirm like a stepped-on worm. What was she supposed to say?!

Soma peeked up and saw the mess she had turned into. If he was not embarrassed himself, he would have burst laughing.

"Uh, you okay?"

"No!"

He jumped in his seat. Should try to calm her down? Let her vent?

"I… I don't know what to say, but… what's the problem?" Even as the words left him, he wanted to kick himself. Why didn't his parents teach him about tact?

Amila turned away from him, silently begging her face would stop burning up. Her tail was swinging wildly now, the tip vibrating like a rattlesnake's. Soma shuffled away on the couch, raising a hand to his face just in case.

"The problem- _saakif aje_ -" she looked at the hallway, hoping her family could not hear her "-it sounds stupid but… I miss home. I guess."

It sounded even stupider now that she said it, but her heart felt like it slowed somewhat. She tried to slow her breath, and when she turned back to him, he was looking at the ground.

"...Well? Nothing to say?" she finally asked, a smile absently forming. He was afraid, that much was obvious.

"I'm sorry," he said, keeping his head down. "I have no idea, what you're going through-"

"Oh, no! Do go on!" she said, almost scaring herself with how harsh she sounded. "I want to hear your opinion on this. Tell me: what do you think?"

Slowly, he got up, but kept his eyes down. Despite the internal heating, the air felt colder for both of them. Soma did not want to break the silence, but Amila did not have to coil around him this time to make him talk.

"Naharu said that… the _zaafre 'ahelie_ have problems with the humans in Egypt." When she nodded, he continued. "You want to go back, but you can't. Not like how it is now." His eyes narrowed and his hands tensed. "You, your family here. It's not that you chose to live here: you had to."

He did not have to look at her. A whisper of a "Yeah" was enough. He leaned against the wall and rubbed his forehead.

 _I knew it. Too good to be true. As if a whole family of lamia would move to Japan without something making them._

"Before you say anything else," Amila growled. "I don't need, WE don't need any _shaflikah_ , your pity or your sympathy. We made it this far, lived this long, without any of it. Don't act like you know what that's like, not when you're here."

He sighed, trying to arrange his words in a way that would not anger her further. Swallowing, he faced her. "Yeah. I probably don't. I don't know what it's like, running from home to save yourselves, leaving people behind." He paused when he noticed her mouth twitching, showing her teeth just a little. He had to be careful. "I can't sympathize with you on that. But I understand, just a bit."

Amila looked back again, expecting Rasa or Naharu to come see what the problem was, but no one came. Another pause for breath, and she slumped back, leaning on the opposite wall.

"I didn't want to leave." She rested her head on her hand so it covered her eyes. Her tail spread across the room like a wet noodle. "I wanted to stay, even if it meant fighting with them. The humans."

"If the situation was bad enough that they your family had to leave, maybe they had a good reason to?" he asked. He was glad that she had calmed down, but did not know if having her emotionally exhausted was a good thing.

"Keh. I've been telling myself that for a year. Now look at me."

He flinched at her voice. "And Amal? Naharu, Rasa? Even if it meant having them in danger."

"Tch, if they wanted to leave, they should have just taken Amal."

"If they did, she would have been lonely. She needs you, with her."

Another moment of silence.

"Hey," she said. "You said you understood me, right? Then can I ask you something?"

He did not realize how exhausted he was and ended up nodding before he could stop.

"Do you think… with enough time, we can make a proper life in Japan?"

Soma's fingernails dug into his palms. His answer was simple, but that did not mean answering her questions was just as easy.

"No," he said after clearing his throat. "I want to believe it, I want to think it, but I don't think lamias can live like normal humans can. Even with the government's support and specialized buildings, there's going to be some parts that… just don't work out. At least not the way the law's set up for now."

Amila lowered her hand, hoping he didn't see her wiping her eyes. Through it all, she mustered a laugh. "You know, I said the same thing to _uomi_ , but when you told me just how many people live here, that confirmed it for me."

"You don't like the idea?"

"It just means that we'll be going back one day." She leaned her head back to the wall, but kept eye contact. "I don't know about you humans, but to us, the place we are born is our home, _masqat'lrets,_ from beginning to end. That land is sacred, and it's a part of us just as we're a part of it."

He gulped. "And that's why there's..."

" _Shar'bn_. Violence. Ever since we've revealed ourselves, some of the _bashr_ have been angry. _Murrwan_. Some want us to leave, even though we've been living there just as long as them. We have people protecting us, and not much of our lives' changed, but that doesn't mean we don't know how bad it is." She clenched her chest. "Not that I'm complaining, but… but it's our home, _masqat'lrets_ , you know?"

Soma nodded. "I get ya. There's some things you need to do with your own hands. But you should focus on what you CAN do with your hands, you know?"

She smiled. "Yeah. I get ya. Did I say that right?"

He snickered. "Nice. You'll get lots of live practice tomorrow."

"I'm getting practice now!" Amila snickered along, until it burst into giggles. Her tail slithered up to her, coiling around like a spring. "It's stupid, this. I think I talked more today than the entire time I've been here."

"Yet you're good enough to talk like this?"

"I told you before: living in a completely different place is a good motivator!"

They snickered together for a while, until they saw the sun setting from the window.

"And there's our lights out?" Soma asked. "Wake and sleep with the sun, right?"

"Only the _amasn'n_ , the old, still do that." She shook her head, but her smile was ever present. "But since we're leaving tomorrow, we should sleep early."

He nodded and got up, folding his laptop under his arm.

"By the way," she interrupted. Her face fell when he stared at her, but forced herself to look back. "Thanks. I… wanted, needed to get some things out. I just… didn't notice it until now."

Even with a burning face, he gave a smidgen of a smile. He did not realize how tired he was with her until he got up. "No problem. Feelings are hard to digest. Just don't you go too soft. Tomorrow, Amal's going to be counting on you, looking at you for help."

"Don't worry. No one messed with us back then, and that's not going to happen this time." She started chuckling, but stopped as she stared at his laptop. "Hey, when we were studying, you were drawing something, weren't you?"

The expression on his face was difficult to put to words. It was the kind of face a child made when filching a snack, only instead of nervousness, his smile had a dose of derring do.

"Yyyeah?" He scratched his head. "It's what I do back home."

"Were you drawing me and Amal?"

He blinked. "Not yet."

She thought she could see his smile get wider, and could not resist doing the same. "Just don't ask us to pose for you."

...

"Ah, Mr. Satou, how was your first day?"

"Pretty good. I'm calling about the documents: I finished them."

Smith twiddled with the phone cord. "Perfect. I told your host Rasa that I'd pick them up tomorrow."

"That's part of why I called you. How early can you come by?"

She frowned. "Hm. About nine to ten. Do you have an emergency?"

"No, I just… sorry if I'm sounding rude."

Smith snickered, earning a couple looks from her coworkers. "Not at all. But really, if there's an emergency, contacting me's the first thing to do. Well, besides, calling 119."

"119? Oh, right," Soma said. "Anyways, this isn't an emergency, but I… I wanted to know if you could come by any sooner."

"Sooner?" she repeated.

"Yeah. I mean, we have a trip to Osaka, for tomorrow. Rasa said we would go after handing in my documents. But since we don't know when you'd be coming, I just wanted to ask."

 _Punctual. And a trip all the way to Osaka? They're jumping on him faster than I thought._

"I can't fault you for doing your job, Mr. Satou," she said after moment. "I'll try to come by as early as I can, but I can't promise anything."

"Alright, that's all I needed to know."

"By the way, how are things on your end?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, how's the first day, living in a snake den?"

"...More boring than I thought. I mean, I'm surrounded by _zaaf-_ echidnae, sure, but they're nice. Like, really nice."

"Uncomfortably nice, even?" Smith asked, eyebrow rising.

"That's what Amila's for. It's like she's the only one bothered with me here."

"Ah, I thought you'd have trouble with her. Hope she wasn't too temperamental."

"It would be weird if she wasn't. If she doesn't like me, I'm glad she's honest about it, at least."

"Good. Do you have anything else to report?"

"Not yet. But we'll talk more tomorrow, right?"

"Of course. I'll try not to delay you and the Airi family's trip too long."

With that, she hung up, sighing through her hands.

"Something wrong?" Manako asked, finishing up her latest forms. "Should I get some tea?"

"No, just some good news, for a change." She rubbed her eyes and smiled. "The new guy's blending well with the echidnae. Want to come check him out again tomorrow?"

"Che-check him out?!" Manako stuttered while Zombina and Doppel giggled next to her.

"Relax, Manako, just kidding." Smith leaned back on her chair, leering at the pile of paperwork, incomplete and waiting for processing. Even with Manako and the rest of M.O.N. helping, there was still work left. And that stack's only going to get higher tomorrow. And she wasn't even getting paid overtime!

 _Lucky kid, chumming up with a family of echidnae like them. And they're going on a shopping trip too!_

"I know that look, Ms. Smith," Tio said, shaking her head. "You want to take another vacation day. You took one yesterday, and look how much work you let pile up."

Smith did not answer, but the look on her face was obvious: "Yeah, but still…"

"Are you still worked up about being moved out?" Doppel asked. "That you can't dump some of your problems on your boytoy anymore? What about us?"

Smith glared at the shapeshifter. Her exhaustion combined with caffeine shortage meant her mood was beyond irritable. Regardless of what she said or her superiors thought, Kimihito was a irreplaceable test case for the Exchange Program.

"You have other cases, hosts, to check on." Doppel turned serious, taking a folder out of Smith's pile. Pathetic or not, Smith was still their superior. "Don't think back on him too much, or you'll get lazy. Just learn from it and move on."

"You'd know that best, wouldn't you?" Smith groaned, only receiving a shrug as a reply.

"It's not like we can do anything about it now. Let's just hope his new coordinator's less of a slacker- I mean, less busy so he can be more on top of his cases." Smirking, Doppel returned to her desk, lazily reading over her documents.

Smith sighed. Same old, same old. At least it helped her vent.

"Here, Ms. Smith." Manako laid down a steaming cup of tea beside her.

 _It's not coffee, but it's the only caffeine we have in this cubby. Maybe tomorrow, when I'm in Kyoto..._

"Thanks," Manako mumbled, taking a scalding sip. "Still, you want to come with?"

"Oh, no thank you," she said, rubbing her hands together. "It's not that I don't want to, it's just… you have so much work left and you could use all the help you can get."

"True, but I'd rather not go by myself, and you already met Soma."

"Yeah, what's he like?" Tio asked, smiling. "Is he tall? Does he have a good fashion sense?"

"Eh… he's pretty average. Like, even less than Kimihito," Smith answered. Aside from his stouter build and sarcasm, it was true in her experience.

"Er, what she means is," Manako started. "Soma's a nice guy. He knows what he's getting into by living with a echidnae host family, and he's-"

"Woah, woah, hold on a sec!" Zombina broke in, getting up from her seat to point at Smith. "He's a dude, living with a family of FEMALE echidnae?"

"Well it's not like there's any male lamia, right?" Tio wondered.

 _Oh yeah, Zombina wasn't here yesterday to hear the news._

"I gotta check this out!" Her teeth bared in anticipation, she opened another folder of documents. "Hey, Smith! If I finish that pile-" she pointed at said pile "-you're taking me to that snake den!"

 _Snake den, huh? I bet the locals are already calling it that_.

"Anything to get some work off my back, I guess," she chuckled. Was she that easy? "Knock yourself out. Looks like I'll be able to get decent sleep today."

Doppel shot her a look, only for smirk again. "There's Kuroko for ya. Tio, Manako, you with this?"

"Yeah/sure!"

"You girls…" Smith took a deep swig of her tea. For a moment, it almost tasted like coffee.

...

Thanks for Finoal, as always.


End file.
